Attendance and Absence:
You have probably seen a few stories about concerns over student attendance in the news recently.
Covid-19 has absolutely had a considerable impact on attendance. We understand this and have made a big effort to be understanding and supportive to all our families.
We also know that for children to do well in their learning and in their preparation for life, they need to be in school as much as they possibly can be.
We encourage families to think about their children's attendance carefully, and if you have questions or need support, please do get in touch with us. This could be with your child's teacher, with DP Adele (adelen@westernheights.school.nz) or with me - macash@mac.com
We have good safety measures in place - cleaning, masks, ventilation, air purifiers and more. So, we are looking forward to seeing your child at school (almost) every day going forward.
If your child is going to be away, then we REALLY need to know.
We have so many ways you can let us know -
- our Hero App - available from App Store and Google Play
- email away@westernheights.school.nz
- phone 09 8361213 and press 1 and leave a message
- text our school cell phone 0210402125
The Hero App - search the App Store or Google Play by typing in Linc-Ed - is the BEST way to inform us about absences.
It is so easy to get the right message to the right place and really easy to type in the "reason" for absence.
Using Hero sends the absence message directly to our office and your child's teacher and records it in the right place for Ministry requirements, saving office staff from manually entering it there.
Please do provide a reason for your child's absence when you connect via one of the above methods. We really need more information than just "not in today" or similar.
On that point, please let us know if the absence is likely to be for more than one day. Ideally, let us know your child is away each day, not just on the first day. I know that is extra work for you, but it saves us so much time and does a lot to help us ensure EVERY child is safely accounted for EVERY day.
With sincere thanks.
