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INFORMATION FOR PARENTS

Term Dates, Attendance, Uniform and Lunches

Holne Chase Term Dates 2024-2025
Holne Chase Term Dates 2025-2026

OPENING TIMES:

EYFS & KS1: 8:40am – 3pm
KS2: 8:40am – 3:10pm

ATTENDANCE:

High attendance at school ensures that your child has the best opportunities to be successful and make the best progress in their learning. Children are expected to be in school every day to ensure that they do not miss learning opportunities to achieve their full potential. A school day is made up of two sessions and in order for your child to be registered as present, they must be in school when the register is taken at 8:50am (morning session) and 1pm (afternoon session).

Following new guidance, all absence (excluding illness) must be requested in advance by completing an Absence Request Form. This must be submitted to the office prior to the absence where I am legally required to either authorise or unauthorise the absence request. Any requests submitted after the absence, will be automatically unauthorised.

Authorised Absence

  • Medical or Dental Appointments – Where possible, these should be made outside of school hours or after they are registered at 8:50am or 1pm to ensure they get their present mark. Any appointment must be requested on a form and proof of the medical appointment must be provided.
  • Illness – If your child is off sick, you must inform the school office by 9am where you must inform us of their symptoms and illness they have. If the NHS guidance suggests that your child should be in school based on their symptoms, their attendance could be registered as unauthorised. Guidance suggests that children should be in school if they have a minor cough or cold. When a child is off for 5 days or more consecutively, we may request medical evidence for their absence. Once a child has been off with illness for 15 days over the course of an academic year, this is automatically referred to the Local Authority.
  • Religious Observance – Any children celebrating a religious festival that falls outside of the school holidays, are entitled to be off school. The school must be informed of this absence in advance where this is possible.

Unauthorised Absence

The new attendance guidelines means that schools are now required to refer families for fines based on 10 unauthorised sessions (5 days) within a 10 week rolling period.

  • Term Time Holidays – All holidays will be deemed unauthorised. Any holidays lasting 5 or more days will be served a fixed penalty notice. We will require proof of return flight in the following circumstances – Holidays within Europe lasting more than 5 days or any length holiday outside of Europe.
  • Unauthorised Absence – Any absence which is deemed as unauthorised will be marked with an unauthorised code. Any child who has 10 unauthorised sessions within a 10-week period will be served a ‘Notice to Improve’ letter where you are advised that your child’s attendance must improve or a fine will be issued. Before this occurs, you will be expected to engage in support offered to you from the school.
  • Lateness – If your child arrives to school after the register is taken, they could be registered as ‘Late After the Register Closes’, which is an unauthorised absence. Therefore, persistent lateness can result in a fined being issued.

Requests for leave will automatically be unauthorised if your child meets any of the following criteria:

  • Immediately before and during statutory assessment periods
  • When a pupil’s attendance record shows any unauthorised absence
  • Where a pupil’s authorised absence record is already above 10 percent for any reason

After 5 consecutive days of absence, a member of the Safeguarding team will be informed and may need to conduct a home visit for a wellbeing check.

More examples of authorised and unauthorised absences (including attendance codes) can be found on our Attendance Policy.

UNIFORM:

School Uniform List

LUNCHES:

Our hot meals are provided by ABM and you can book your child’s meals for the term via ParentPay. Further information can be found below:

ABM Allergen Policy

Special Diet Procedure

Special Diet Letter – September 2024

INFORMATION FOR PARENTS
We are relentless in our pursuit of school improvement, and have a passion for providing children with the very best start to their school careers.
Our

Trust

Our Trust offers the region’s very best learning environments, opportunities and experiences, to staff and pupils in five schools (outstanding, good, new and improving) located in Northamptonshire and Milton Keynes.

Our unique blend of Fun, Creativity and Achievement, underpins everything we do to deliver high standards of education in all our schools, with brilliant schemes of learning creating real and lasting improvements. This year the percentage of children reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was significantly higher in the Trust’s schools than nationally.

OUR STORY
A school for the whole family

A proactive member of the community in Bletchley since opening in 1952, we are a school for the whole family, with a committed and highly skilled teaching staff, led by brilliant new headteacher David Killick.

We believe learning is a partnership between home and school and, since joining Preston Hedges Trust, have transformed the early years provision to embed a ‘best practice’ reading scheme and prioritise learning through creative play.

Holne Chase Primary School, Buckingham Road, Bletchley, Milton Keynes MK3 5HP

Registered Office: Wootton Hope Drive, Wootton Fields, Northampton NN4 6BU
Registration No. 08282041. England & Wales.