From the Principal

School Attendance

Attendance

All students in our school have their attendance records kept in Compass and in our data ecosystem which is a visual representation of each students attendance throughout the term and year. Armidale Catholic Schools attendance officers have access to this information.

Students are categorised according to their level of attendance which reflects their reception of learning.

Regular attendance at school is essential if students are to maximise their potential. Obviously we cannot teach students who are not present at school.

While parents are legally responsible for the regular attendance of their children, St Joseph’s works in partnership with parents and I am always willing to discuss attendance with our families.

The following diagram shares how significant just the ‘odd day’ off school can become and how it can accumulate into a risk for a child’s learning potential:

Absences

New families and exisiting families are reminded that if your child is not going to be at school, you need to lodge an absence for your child in your parent Compass App (you may email or call the school also). If we do not have a note in Compass by 10am, an automated reminder is sent from our attendance system to remind you that your child is not at school and their absence has not been explained.

If your child is going to be absent for more than a day for non medical or non sickness reasons, please complete a Student Leave Form. A copy of this is always accessible on the Contact Information page of the newsletter, or contact the front office for a copy to be emailed directly to you.

We also remind you that if you do not explain an absence within 7 days, we are unable to explain the absence in our system and it will appear on your childs report as unexplained. This is a state policy rule that our school is unable to change.