Attendance Matters 

Why attendance matters.   

Every student absence impacts achievement. Non attendance can have both an academic and social impact. It is safe say that 'it in order to learning at school you need to present'. 

Explained absences such as medical appointment and illness are reasons to be absent and we completely support you keeping your child at home if they are unwell.  However, there are times when students are at home when they should be at school. If you are having concerns with school refusal and attendance please contact us to enable us to work together to address this issue.  Early intervention is the key! 

Have you changed your contact details? 

There are times when we will need to contact you, including on the day if your child is absent and you haven’t informed the school as to why. Do we have your most up to date contact details? If not, please contact the school on  59 839 590 or by email  bittern.ps@education.vic.gov.au so we can update our records. Please include parent/carers’ name, address, phone numbers, email address and emergency contact details. Please remember to contact the school if any of these details or your circumstances change.

Notify the school of your child’s absence 

Protecting the safety and well-being of children through the reporting and monitoring of absenteeism is the responsibility of both parents/carers and schools. 

Please remember to call the school or log your child’s child’s absence using Compass in the morning if your child is going to be away or late for school so your child’s absence can be recorded correctly.

Our school will text/call you as soon as practicable on the day if a student is not at school and you haven’t notified the school as to why. If you are notified by the school that your child is away without a reason, please contact us as soon as possible to let us know where your child is. 

Please remember it is your responsibility to contact us to provide an explanation for your child's absence from school, and where possible, please inform us in advance of upcoming absences.