Attendance

There has been significant media attention on school attendance and absence rates across Aotearoa. As a school, we are dedicated to enhancing our attendance rates and collaborating closely with families to ensure our students are consistently present. To gain deeper insights into our needs, we kindly request that you complete the attached survey. Your input will greatly assist us in identifying areas for improvement.

https://forms.gle/iG8spudeUy2ERjco9

It would be appreciated if you could please complete this before 3pm Friday 3 May.

A reminder about our attendance procedures:

Parents and guardians have legal obligations to ensure their children attend school (Education and Training Act, s 244).

We expect parents/guardians to:

- Notify the school as soon as possible if their child is going to be late or absent. Parents and guardians can contact our absence manager by emailing absences@darfield.school.nz. You can also call the absence line 03 318 8411 ext 3 and leave your child's name, whānau class and the reason for the absence (a medical certificate may be required for absence longer than 3 days).
- Arrange appointments and trips outside school hours or during school holidays where possible. If you have advanced notice of an absence please inform the absence manager via the email/phone number above.
- Provide students with a note if students are needing to sign out during the day. Students would then show this note to their teacher to be excused from class and then bring this note to the office to formally sign out.
- Work with the school to manage attendance concerns.

If not explained in advance, our student management system, Kamar, will send parents/guardians a text if a child has not been marked as present at school that morning, or if they have been marked absent for more than two periods in a row.

Applications for leave may be justified in some cases and must be made in writing in advance to the Principal. Examples of when this would be needed as below:
- National/local representation in a sporting or cultural event in New Zealand or overseas.
- Bereavement leave or exceptional family circumstances, at the Principal’s discretion.
- A course of learning or work experience which is not available at the school and that has been organised through the home (please note that it is illegal for employers to pay enrolled students during school hours).

Please feel free to contact me directly on jp@darfield.school.nz with any further questions. Please do not reply to this email as it is not as closely monitored.

Ngā Mihi,

Jared Peacock
Deputy Principal