Excellent attendance and punctuality are essential for students to achieve individual excellence.  Is it an essential part of our Lincoln Expectations that students have excellent attendance in order to be both ready to learn and engaged in their education, the aim should always be 100%.

Priory Lincoln Academy Attendance Policy

Introduction

At Priory Lincoln Academy, we have a commitment to the best possible standards of teaching and learning, and we encourage the expectations of behaviour and personal conduct that are expressed within the Priory Contract.  For us to achieve this, it is vital that our students attend regularly and on time and that attendance is 95% or higher.

The link between attendance and attainment is clear, in the academic year 2022/2023, Year 11 pupils with an attendance of at least 95% were found to be:

• 1.9 times more likely to achieve Grade 5 in maths and English GCSE compared to pupils with an attendance of 9095% (relating to up to 2 weeks more in time school over the course of a year)
• 3 times more likely to achieve Grade 5 in maths and English GCSE than persistently absent pupils with an attendance of 8590% (relating to 4-6 weeks more in time school over the course of a year)

This means missing just 10 days of year 11 reduced the likelihood of achieving grade 5 in English and Maths by around 50%.

(Department for Education, March 2025)

Attendance Boundaries

If you have concerns, or would like some support with your child’s attendance, please contact the Academy as soon as you can so that we can provide early intervention.

Punctuality

We believe that every minute with our students is vital and Priory Lincoln Academy students must be both punctual to school in a morning and to every taught session to demonstrate that they are Ready to learn, Respectful of staff and their peers and Engaged with Academy life.

Punctuality to School

• Personal Development begins at 8.30am and all students are expected to be in their Year areas ready for morning line up by this time.
• Students who are late after the start of Personal Development will enter academy site via the gate outside the Keyworth building until 9:00am
• After 9:00am, students will sign in at Student Reception (in Main Reception)
• Students who arrive after 9:15 will sign in at Student Reception, but without an acceptable reason, will be given an unauthorised late mark.

Punctuality to Lessons

Students are expected to be on time to each of their taught sessions throughout the Academy day. Arriving on time means that students contribute to the calm, purposeful and safe running of the Academy, can maximise learning time and therefore make good progress in the lesson.

Recognising and Rewarding Good Attendance

Encouraging and supporting good attendance is everyone’s responsibility, including parents, carers and staff.  We recognise and reward good attendance at Priory Lincoln in various ways, including but not exclusive to:

• A dedicated weekly Attendance morning in Personal Development
• Inter-Tutor Group competitions
• A weekly 100% attendance prize draw
• Progress Check Reports three times a year  
• Display of form attendance and modular/ termly prize for the form with the best/ most improved attendance
• Attendance badges
• End of Module/ Term Certificates for individuals with 100% attendance
• Reward trips for good attendance
• Rewards through the Lincoln City Attendance 4 Attendance scheme Attendance4Attendance | Lincoln City Football Club (weareimps.com)

Absence Procedures: If your child is absent you must:

• Contact the Academy on the first day of absence, as soon as possible, using the online form: Student Absence Reporting
• Contact the Academy on each subsequent day of absence

If your child is absent and we do not hear from you, the Academy will send an in touch text message/ email by 10.00am requesting you make contact. If you do not respond to this message, the academy will make contact via telephone. Contact will be made on each subsequent day if a reason for the absence has not been provided. By the third day of absence, if a reason for the absence has still not been provided, a home visit will be completed by Academy staff.

 Holidays in Term Time and Requesting a Leave of Absence

We kindly ask for your continued support in refraining from taking term-time holidays, as this significantly affects your child's education. The Headteacher will only grant a leave request in exceptional circumstances (to be determined by the academy Holidays during term time, in line with our Attendance Policy and the DfE guidance,).

Parents/Carers who believe they have exceptional circumstances must make a request for a leave of absence to the Headteacher no less than one month prior to the holiday (a form can be obtained from the academy reception or using the link below). If the circumstances are not considered to be exceptional, and permission to take a term-time holiday is not granted by the Headteacher, but the holiday is still taken, the absence will be recorded as unauthorised and a Fixed Penalty Notice may be issued by the Local Authority.

Request for a Leave of Absence - Link to Microsoft Form or please download the document from the bottom of the page.

Appointments

The wellbeing of our students is importance to us, and we wish to support parents and carers with any appointments that pupils need to attend. We ask where possible and if not urgent, that appointments are made after 15:30 so that students can attend for the entirety of the school day and maximise their learning time. If an appointment is made during the school day we ask that you do not keep your child off school for the whole day. You will be able to pick up and drop off your child at Student Reception.

When students are unwell and unable to get out of bed, we ask that families seek swift and appropriate support from the GP.  We respect that students will at times feel slightly unwell and will have the resilience to still come to the academy to engage with their learning. 

What can parents/carers do to support their child?

• Support their learning
• Talk positively about school and let your child know you're there to support their learning at home
• Attend Parents' Evenings and other Academy Events
• Book routine, non-urgent, medical appointments outside of school time
• Do not book family holidays during school time (13 week holidays)
• Develop their resilience – is your child really too ill to attend school?

	Lincoln Academy : Attendance Matters Attend Today, Achieve Tomorrow