Leave of absence in term time
Any request for a leave of absence in term time, regardless of number of days, should be made by completing the form below.
Our Attendance policy (October 2024), complies with the DfE (2024) documents, ‘Working together to improve school attendance’, School attendance – Guidance for maintained schools, academies, independent schools and local authorities and ‘Keeping children safe in education’.
DFE legislation states that headteachers may only grant any leave of absence if there are exceptional circumstances.
Any families considering taking holiday will now come under these regulations and must accept that it would have to be unauthorised. As stipulated by the authority, any holiday time taken of 5 days or more, will result in a fixed penalty notice. Please note that if a parent books 4 days holiday in term time and then the child is absent on the 5th day, we will mark this absence as unauthorised and a fixed penalty notice will be issued, as advised by the local authority.
All requests for absence must be made on our official leave of absence request form. This can be downloaded from the link below and is also available at the school reception. The completed form can then be handed in at the school office or emailed to our attendance officer at pupilabsence@alamedamiddleschool.org.uk. The attendance officer then refers this to me for authorisation. The form must be submitted at least two weeks prior to the request date.
As you will understand the Governing Body and I must adhere to the DFE and local Authority regulations and I hope that you will work with us.
Mrs Sibley, Assistant Headteacher
There are specific government guidelines which we will follow to determine whether or not a request is approved and these can be viewed at the Central Bedfordshire site : Click Here
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Attendance expectations September 2025 | [pdf 202KB] |
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CBC - Penalty Notice Fines Poster August 2024 | [pdf 602KB] |
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DfE Privacy Notice for Attendance Data Collection | [pdf 852KB] |
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Leave of Absence Request Form | [pdf 196KB] |
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Pupil absence - illness & medical appointments
Pupil Absence from School
As you know, attendance plays a vital role in your child's education. Missing just one day can mean losing 5 hours of valuable learning, which can be difficult to catch up on. Equally important is the social interaction that takes place during the school day, which contributes significantly to your child’s overall well-being.
We truly appreciate your ongoing support, and we’re proud to say that the majority of our students maintain excellent attendance. Thank you for ensuring your child continues to benefit from both the academic and social aspects of school life.
I would like to remind everyone of the procedures to follow if your child is not going to be at school.
Sickness absence
If your child is ill and cannot therefore come to school, please telephone the school each day on 01525 750900 and press option 1 or email pupilabsence@alamedamiddleschool.org.uk by 9:00 am. This is really important for safeguarding reasons; you may know your chid is safe with you, but we do not and we never assume that to be the case.
Medical Appointments
If your child has a planned medical appointment (or dentist appointment), please email pupilabsence@alamedamiddleschool.org.uk or send a letter in to school addressed to Mrs Maidment our attendance officer. It is helpful if you contact Mrs Maidment directly (via the pupil absence email or letter) rather than send the email to form tutors. Mrs Maidment can then make sure tutors are aware of absences. A leave of absence request is not needed for medical appointments.
Mrs Sibley
Assistant Headteacher