Attendance

At Imberhorne we believe that regular attendance is critical to every student’s academic success. Once attendance drops below 95% (the equivalent of half a day’s absence per fortnight or around two weeks across a year), a student’s chances of reaching their academic potential are significantly reduced. Much of the curriculum is taught only once, and missing key lessons creates gaps in knowledge that are difficult to fill. Over time, this can cause students to fall further behind.

The school therefore takes a robust approach to monitoring and intervening where attendance is a concern. Parents are overwhelmingly supportive of this stance, recognising its importance for their child’s progress and wellbeing.

Why is attendance important?

• When your child is absent, they miss out on the high-quality teaching and pastoral care we provide.
• Students benefit most from direct interaction with specialist staff, and research shows how valuable this time is.
• Daily attendance supports vital social connections with peers and trusted adults, helping young people develop fully in a busy, connected world.
• Success at school is strongly linked to better opportunities in later life – including higher wages, improved health, and greater happiness. We want this for all of our students.
• Education is also one of the most powerful tools for breaking cycles of disadvantage and enabling young people to thrive.

What are we doing to encourage attendance?

• We are relentlessly ambitious for our students and hold high expectations for every child.
• We foster a culture in which both staff and students feel valued and supported.
• We provide access to trusted adults who offer excellent pastoral care and academic guidance.
• Where appropriate, we recognise and reward excellent attendance through a range of incentives.

Appointments

We ask that all appointments, such as medical or dental visits, are arranged outside of the school day wherever possible. We appreciate this is not always within your control. If your child must leave school during the day, please follow this procedure to ensure all relevant staff are informed in advance:

• Email: reception [at] imberhorne [dot] co [dot] uk, providing your child’s name, tutor/year group, reason for appointment, time of leaving, and approximate time of return (if applicable).
• Phone: If emailing is not possible, please call reception on 01342 323562 (Option 0).

Please do not email Heads of Year or Pastoral Teams, as this may delay the message reaching the right staff.

Students must always leave via WL/IL main reception and sign out in the student register.

Please note: only the school can authorise absences. 

Leave of Absence Requests

We ask for your support in ensuring excellent attendance by not taking your child out of school during term time.

Government legislation makes clear that:

• Applications for leave of absence must be made in advance by the parent with whom the child normally resides.
• Leave can only be granted in exceptional circumstances.

Our procedure for making a request is set out in the form below, which must be completed for every application. Requests cannot be made retrospectively.

Where a student takes unauthorised absence, the school is required to share this with the West Sussex Education Welfare Service, which has the authority to issue fines. For more information, please see the link below on Fixed Penalty Notices.