At St Ambrose, we believe that every child deserves to feel welcomed, safe and ready to learn. Good attendance is one of the strongest foundations for academic success, wellbeing and positive relationships.

We are proud that all members of our staff have completed Inclusive Attendance training, ensuring that our approach to attendance is supportive, compassionate and focused on understanding barriers to school attendance.

As a Trauma-Informed School, we recognise that a child's experiences can have a significant impact on their ability to engage with learning and attend school regularly. Our staff understand the effects of adversity and work to build trusting relationships, create emotionally safe environments and respond with empathy and consistency. We seek to understand the reasons behind attendance difficulties and work collaboratively with families to provide the right support.

We are also delighted to have achieved the Inclusive Attendance Bronze Award during the 2025-26 academic year. This recognises our commitment to creating a culture where attendance is everyone's responsibility and where families are supported to help children attend school regularly.

Our attendance culture is built on the belief that children attend school best when they feel safe, valued, understood and connected.

We understand that children and families may experience a range of challenges that affect attendance, including emotional wellbeing, health needs, additional educational needs, family circumstances or other barriers. Rather than focusing solely on absence, we work in partnership with parents, carers and external agencies to understand these barriers and provide timely support.

Our approach is based on:

• Building positive, trusting relationships with children and families.
• Creating a safe, nurturing and emotionally supportive environment.
• Identifying attendance concerns early.
• Listening to children and parents to understand barriers to attendance.
• Providing appropriate support before difficulties become entrenched.
• Working collaboratively with external agencies where needed.
• Celebrating and promoting good attendance and punctuality.
• Maintaining high expectations while responding with empathy, respect and understanding.

Regular attendance helps children to:

• achieve their full academic potential;
• build friendships and develop social skills;
• develop resilience and confidence;
• maintain positive routines;
• improve emotional wellbeing;
• access the full curriculum and wider opportunities available at school.

Even occasional absence can result in children missing important learning and experiences that are difficult to replace.

Parents have a legal responsibility to ensure that their child receives a suitable full-time education and attends school regularly once they are registered at school.

Parents and carers should:

• ensure their child arrives at school on time every day;
• notify the school as soon as possible on the first day of any absence;
• provide the reason for absence;
• avoid booking holidays during term time wherever possible.

Requests for leave of absence during term time will only be authorised in exceptional circumstances, in line with Department for Education guidance and local authority procedures.

If we notice that attendance is beginning to decline, we will contact families at an early stage to understand any concerns and explore what support may be helpful.

Support may include:

• meetings with parents or carers;
• pastoral and wellbeing support;
• reasonable adjustments where appropriate;
• support for pupils with additional needs;
• referrals to specialist services;
• working with the Local Authority Attendance Team where necessary.

Our aim is always to work alongside families to remove barriers to attendance and ensure every child can attend school successfully.

Our attendance procedures follow the Department for Education's statutory guidance, Working Together to Improve School Attendance, which promotes a support-first approach and expects schools to work in partnership with families and local authorities to improve attendance. Schools are expected to promote regular attendance, identify pupils at risk of persistent absence, understand the barriers they face and provide targeted support before legal intervention is considered.

The Department for Education also requires schools in England to share daily attendance data as part of national attendance monitoring arrangements.

If your child is unable to attend school, please contact the school office as early as possible on the first day of absence.

Telephone: 01562 823568

Email: enquiry_amb@emmausmac.com

Please include:

• your child's full name;
• class or year group;
• reason for absence;
• expected date of return (if known).

Please read our Attendance Policy for full details of our procedures, expectations and statutory responsibilities.

If you are experiencing difficulties that may affect your child's attendance, please contact us as early as possible. We know that challenges can arise at any time, and we are committed to working alongside families to find supportive, practical solutions that help every child attend school regularly, feel safe and thrive.