Praise for not missing a single day
Pupils who’ve not had a day off school all year are off to an awards ceremony tonight. It’s part of a drive to help improve attendance levels.
Over 300 pupils will be awarded certificates at 2 ceremonies at County Hall. They include 21 pupils from Avenue Junior, whose school has best record of all the junior and primary schools in the area. City of Norwich School had the largest number of high school pupils who hadn’t missed a single day.
Reducing absence is a priority for Norfolk County Council and local schools. Headteacher at Cavell Primary in Lakenham, Simon Wakeman, said: “We know there is a link between attendance and attainment and we have been working very hard with parents to improve overall attendance, and in particular persistent absence, which has now more than halved.”
Most children fall ill at some point during any year, but attendance officers want to crack down on days off for coughs and colds. Simon Wakeman added: “One of our main focuses has been around minor illness… We have asked parents to send their child in if they are a little under the weather and we will get in contact via phone or text if they are too unwell to stay at school. We often find they are fine once they have settled in and got down to work.”
A spokesperson for Norfolk County Council, Kate Gooding, said: ”The reason for setting the bar at 100% is because that is what we want young people to aspire to. We believe that children that have achieved this outstanding level of attendance deserve to be recognised.”
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