Pupil Absence Notification In Primary Schools – August 2016 Version

To ensure as far as possible the safety and well-being of children, Education and Social Care has reviewed the procedures and practices, which have been in place since 2005, with regard to the notification of pupil absence and all primary schools in Moray will adopt the procedures detailed below starting from today.

1. If your child is not able to attend school, you should contact the school, preferable by email, telephone 01542 831417, the School Information Line on 0870 054 9999 (code 031160) or the Parent Portal and advise us of the reason for the absence and the likely date of return to school.  You may of course send another member of the family to school with a note giving details of the absence.  You should do this at your earliest convenience and where possible before the start of the school day for pupils.
    
2. We will check the attendance register daily at the beginning of the morning and afternoon sessions as we do at the moment in any case. 
    
3. If your child is found to be absent and we have not been advised by you of their absence, then we will contact you by telephone to alert you to this.  We will use the contact information provided by you.  If there are arrangements for your child(ren) to stay with an ex-spouse or partner, please keep the school updated with the access arrangements.  We will make this a priority and will complete these checks as soon as possible, taking into consideration the availability of administration support in the school.
    
4. If we cannot immediately make contact with you or a partner, then we will contact the person you have named as your family emergency contact.  Failure to make contact with you or any of your emergency contacts will result in us alerting Police Scotland.
    
5. Should you have concerns about the well-being for your child, for any reason, prior to them leaving for school in the morning, please contact the school personally or by telephone to alert a member of staff.