At Plume, Maldon's Community Academy, we believe in maximising school attendance for all and supporting families to enable our students to maximise their attendance. Through a proactive, holistic approach we will always do our utmost to support students in attending the academy.
Attendance is of paramount importance to our students’ successes at Plume and in their education. By triangulating support between the academy, students and their parents/carers we can foster and create a successful foundation to building sustained resilience in our students. As an academy, our target attendance figure is 95% and through our Maximising School Attendance Team we will continue to strive to maximise attendance to 95%+.
Maximising School Attendance Team at Plume, Maldon's Community Academy
To oversee attendance at Plume Academy line managing all areas of attendance and ensuring the academy remain compliant with the Department for Education's policies and guidance.
Mr Stoneman
Deputy Headteacher, Designated Safeguarding Lead and Academy Attendance Champion
To be the lead attendance figure for our Key Stage 5 students supporting with communications and monitoring, supporting and maximising students attendance across Plume College.
To lead on attendance for all students at Fambridge Road Campus supporting with communications and monitoring, supporting and maximising students attendance across Years 9-11.
To lead on attendance for all students at Mill Road Campus supporting with communications and monitoring, supporting and maximising students attendance across Years 7 and 8.
To support students who may be struggling to consistently attend the academy, and with medical evidence will be supported by the local authority and academy via an Education Access Referral.
Mrs Sarling
Maximising School Attendance Programme Co-ordinator
To complete regular home visits to parents and carers addresses, to ensure that families are supported in a bespoke manner, to encourage and ensure that students continue to improve their attendance.
For the current Academy Policies in place, please visit the Policies page.
Working together to improve school attendance
Resources for families | Children's Commissioner for England (childrenscommissioner.gov.uk)
How to apply for Leave of Absence
Mrs Clark, as the Joint Head of Academy, will be leading on the decision process for holiday requests during term time.
These requests must be submitted four weeks before the holiday and will only be authorised if the 'exceptional circumstances' provided are deemed appropriate as outlined by the Department for Education.
All requests will receive an email response from the academy.
Please read and familiarise yourself with this information before completing your application.
Please apply via this link: https://forms.office.com/e/HTCr7imHEF
Further information regarding the recently updated DfE guidance is available here:
https://educationhub.blog.gov.uk/2024/02/29/fines-for-parents-for-taking-children-out-of-school-what-you-need-to-know/
This academic year, as per the updated guidance from the DfE, any student arriving after the registers close at 9am, will now receive a ‘U’ code for their lateness. This ‘U’ code represents an unauthorised absence for a student and will negatively impact their attendance, if they were to fall below 90%, they would be categorised as ‘Persistently Absent’ and this could lead to attendance actions being taken.
Good punctuality at school is essential for students to achieve their full educational potential. It is also vital for students to form good habits for later life. Punctuality records form part of references passed onto employers or higher educational institutes. We would therefore like to remind all stakeholders of the importance of arriving to the academy on time. Whilst we fully appreciate that roadworks and closures can pose some difficulties with punctuality, we reiterate to students that such events should be taken into consideration where possible as it is imperative that students arrive no later than 8.25am each morning.
Punctuality in school life builds the path to success in a student’s life by enabling them to plan ahead, making an efficient routine, and be prepared for their tasks. A punctual student is better equipped to deal with their day-to-day tasks than a person who leaves it for the last moment. As an academy, we acknowledge the importance of punctuality in a student’s life from a young age and strives to build this habit as part of their holistic approach to education.
The tutor time sessions that students attend have clearly planned curriculum that not only include the legal requirement of a morning register being taken, but also Personal Development lessons and crucial information that the students will be required to know for their safety and learning. Students and stakeholders should expect to be challenged on persistent lateness and punctuality issues whether that be to the start of the academy day or individual lessons. Students will be supported as they always are but they will be expected to adhere to the academy movement times and ensure they arrive to lessons on time.
To ensure the correct process is followed please can we ask that on each day of absence by 8.45am:
A call to 01621 854681
Choose Option 1 - 'student absence'
Then:
Option 1 for Years 7 and 8
Option 2 for Years 9 - 11
Alternatively, please email the dedicated Attendance email address attendance@plume.essex.sch.uk which is monitored by both campus Attendance Offices. This can also be used to share medical appointment cards or letters and medical evidence, such as prescriptions and medication packaging.
If you feel you need additional pastoral support or there is a particular barrier to any students attendance of their usual academy provision then please also contact their respective Assistant Head of Year or Head of Year to ensure that we look to continue to maximise all students attendance.
Please note, we support students returning to the academy 24 hours after the last occasion of illness.
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