Dear Parents / Guardians, Re: Attendance / Absence As you are aware excellent attendance is a key factor of pupil success

in secondary education. At Christs we support our pupils learning by encouraging and expecting high levels of attendance. I am writing this letter because I am becoming increasingly concerned about a minority of families who take time off during term time for holidays and other social events. This practice is not acceptable and parents /guardians need to be aware that Head Teachers are no longer permitted to authorise such absence. Pupils are required to be in school every day. When a pupil is not in school when they could be, this is truancy and the pupils record shows the absence as unauthorised. This is the case even if the parents / guardians are aware of the absence. I would be grateful if all parents / guardians would reinforce with their children the fact that every school day needs to be valued. Undermining the value of school by allowing time off is detrimental to your childs education and can cause a shift in their attitude towards their learning. Our term dates follow this letter; please check them carefully if you are planning a holiday. If for any reason it is necessary for your child to be absent please contact school either by phone, Insight or email giving full details for the absence. Please continue to do this for every day your child is absent; when your child returns to school please write a note in his/her school diary so the tutor has written confirmation of the reason for absence. When there is an exceptional circumstance requiring a pupil to be absent, please apply in writing, giving as much detail and notice as possible. In order to ensure that your son/daughter has the highest possible attendance I would be grateful if you could try to arrange all medical / dental appointments outside school hours. Where this is not possible please notify school in advance.

For your information and in order to ensure the safety of all our pupils, when a pupil does not arrive at school and no reason has been given, a text will be sent via our Teachers to Parents service requesting information regarding the absence. If you have any questions regarding attendance, please email Mrs Montagu on kmontagu@christs.richmond.sch.uk she will be happy to help.

Thank you for your on-going support. Kind Regards

Our Term dates are always available on our website and are printed in each Christs Chronicles. Spring Term Monday 6th January 2014 - Friday 4th April 2014 Spring Half Term Monday 17th February 2014 - Friday 21st February 2014 Summer Term Tuesday 22nd April 2014 - Friday 18th July 2014 Summer Half Term Monday 26th May 2014 - Friday 30th May 2014 Inset Days Monday 24th February 2014, Monday 23rd June 2014
INSET days are subject to change. Any changes will be communicated as soon as possible via the school website

2014/2015 Term Dates (Provisional)

Autumn Term Tuesday 2nd September 2014 - Friday 19th December 2014 Autumn Half Term Monday 27th October 2014 - Friday 31st October 2014 Spring Term Monday 5th January 2015 - Friday 27th March 2015 Spring Half Term Monday 16th February 2015 - Friday 20th February 2015 Summer Term Monday 13th April 2015 - Tuesday 21st July 2015 Summer Half Term Monday 25th May 2015 - Friday 29th May 2015 Inset Days TBA