We are finding there are an increasing number of students not attending school on time in the morning, yet parents and carers have confirmed they leave their house in plenty of time to be present and on site at 8.25am. Some students are prolific in this, so I am keen to try a different approach to encourage all students to be on time.
From Tuesday 25th June 2024, we will be trialling ‘Late Gate’. Currently, students enter the school though either the Playground Gate or Stapleton House Gate, but we will now be asking all students who arrive after 8.25 but before 8.55 to enter through the playground gate only. Students with an arrangement of entering through reception will remain unchanged.
The gate will be staffed and late attendance will be recorded at the gate. This will then trigger points in Satchel meaning parents and carers will receive a notification. If punctuality continues to be an issue, we will introduce a same day lunch detention in the main hall for 15 minutes. We are certain taking social time during the day will have an impact in ensuring punctuality improves, but still allowing over half of their lunchtime to eat and use the toilets if they wish. Naturally, further sanctions will follow if this is not attended as expected.
This replaces our current approach for the duration of the trial. If we find it has an impact, we will embed it in our practice from September 2024 and update our policies to reflect the change.
Thank you in advance of your support in this. If you have any questions, please email me directly on [email protected]