Mental Health in Primary Schools (MHiPS)

Attendance Guide for Compass

As mentioned in last weeks newsletter, please find below a 'how to' guide on how to access and enter your childs attendance data on Compass. 

Entering an attendance note

1. From the Compass browser home screen (or from your child’s profile), click the 'Add Attendance Note' item.

    

2. From the pop-up window

• Select the reason
• Enter a brief description of the absence
• Select the start and finish time
• Click the ‘Save’ button

Using the Compass App

1. From the homepage, click on the blue shortcuts button from the bottom taskbar

    

2. Click on ‘Submit Attendance Note’

• Select the reason
• Enter a brief description of the absence
• Select the start and finish time
• Click the ‘Save’ button

SMS Link

If your child is marked as absent without prior approval you will receive a message containing a link. When you follow the link, you will have the opportunity to explain the absence.

Attendance Summary 

Using Compass you can view up-to-the-minute attendance information for your child (see visual below).

Notes

This sub-tab provides a list of attendance explanations for your child. From this tab you can also add absence notes (both past and future).

Explain Specific Absences

This sub-tab provides a list of all unexplained lates and absences from class. From this tab you can click to approve specific absences.

Daily Snapshot

Get a live snapshot of your child's whereabouts for the day inc. absences, custom classes and events, sickbay entries and early departures.

Attendance 'half day' Summary

Includes a summary of attendance. For full details about a specific absence, click on the grid. Please note:

• If the day is green, your child was present. 
• If the day is orange, your child was absent but has an explanation for this day. 
• If the day is red, your child was absent but this is unexplained. 
• If the day is blue, this typically means school-approved or school-related activities. This indicates that the student is away from their regular timetabled class due to an approved school event, such as an excursion, sport, camp, or transition day. 

Please remember, regular school attendance is an important part of supporting your child’s learning, wellbeing and sense of connection to school. We understand that children may be absent for a range of reasons, including illness, appointments and family circumstances. Keeping your child’s attendance information up to date helps us understand their circumstances and ensure we can provide the appropriate support.

If you have any questions about using Compass, entering an absence, or about circumstances affecting your child’s attendance, please reach out to the school's Wellbeing Team. We are here to support you and your child and are always happy to have a conversation about how we can help.

Take care and have a lovely weekend.