Opinions wanted re lateness

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ourmaminhavana
Posts: 966
Joined: Mon Sep 07, 2009 11:14 am

Re: Opinions wanted re lateness

Post by ourmaminhavana »

aliportico wrote:
My feeling is, that it's the school's problem.
I'm sorry, are you saying that it's somehow the school's responsibility to get your daughter there on time in the morning?
Kent99

Re: Opinions wanted re lateness

Post by Kent99 »

It may not be your school's choice to have sent out the EWO letter. In our area (don't know if it's the same everywhere) schools are expected to follow agreed protocols regarding attendance issues. In some cases even the wording of letters is externally determined. Absence (or lateness) will trigger the procedure automatically once it reaches a certain level.

LEA attendance officers/ EWO will visit each school at least once a term and check through the school registers. They will ask to see justification for authorised absence (e.g. sick notes) and will want details of what is being done in respect of individual children whose attendance (in time for registration) falls below a certain threshold. OFSTED will also pick up on any perceived failure on the school's part to tackle problems.

I think that one reason EWOs carry out home visits is that persistent lateness can sometimes be a sign that there are problems at home and under the old "every child matters" policy there was a duty to investigate as appropriate. Given the current funding cuts etc. I suspect that this level of service may no longer be required/ available, but it does serve a purpose.

As others have said, it may at least serve to make your daughter see how serious this issue is. In your shoes I would probably make very sure that she saw my irritation as directed at her and not the school. I might also consider doing a rough cost estimate of the administrative time she has wasted both at the school and with external services, pricing it up and asking her how she plans to repay it. Through charitable donations or donations to school funds perhaps? I suspect I would not be hard enough to follow through with it and actually deprive her of money/ presents or expect her to get a job. But the knowledge that there is actually a substantial financial cost to someone as a result of her irresponsibility/ selfishness might just make a difference?
Sportsmum
Posts: 99
Joined: Mon Mar 14, 2011 11:00 am

Re: Opinions wanted re lateness

Post by Sportsmum »

What % of the lateness is due to afternoon late registration? If it is a large % then the school need to act on this and ensure that rehearsals finish in plenty of time.
You need to explain the facts of life to your child, but you also need to get the school to be more informative - let you know when she's late and by how much - and then insist that they help you by instigating punishments. Quite often children learn that if the parents are working with the school on a matter then there is no where to hide.
As for the EWO - it really depends on the individual - some are completely hopeless (another story) whilst others really can help.
mystery
Posts: 8927
Joined: Tue Jul 21, 2009 10:56 pm

Re: Opinions wanted re lateness

Post by mystery »

These responsbilities that fall between two stools, so to speak, are a right pain and can cause an argument between you and the school rather than the constructive working that is needed.

It is possible that you might find you have a sensible EWO that visits and you are able to explain that you do take your responsibility, you do apply sanctions and rewards etc (have you tried rewards?) and that you feel you would be more effective if the school was able to do the same ... but you understand they are busy etc etc and understand ultimately the responsibility falls to you.

I would suggest that you set up your own clear system of sanctions and rewards now - as the school does not notify you on the day that your daughter is late I would call the school each day to ask if she was in time. Then reward her that evening if she was, and apply your sanction if she was not. Some schools now have computerised systems where the parent can log in daily and see the child's attendance and punctuality lesson by lesson. Your school clearly does not have this, and does not like doing detentions (they are a pain for teachers to do so they've clearly decided not to bother with this for lateness and pass the onus on to parents). You might find that if you explain to the office staff why you are calling up each day they might make some suggestions inside the school which would result in parents being informed promptly if their child is late. Most schools call up immediately if the child is absent -------- it should be possible to incorporate lateness into this procedure.

Your daughter sounds v. sensible in every other way - have you tried looking up the law on school attendance and showing it to your daughter .. ultimately parents can face fines and prison sentences for non-attendance (I don't think 5 mins late would fall into this category but your daughter might be fooled for long enough to get herself to school on time until she is 16!).

I really wouldn't worry abou the EWO - teachers spend years trying to get children to attend school and the EWOs frequently fail, so I can't imagine they are going to do much to you over a bit of lateness. However, you might find that between you, your daughter, the school, and the EWO you work out something that does work. As someone that struggles to be on time in the morning, I kind of wish something like this had been worked on with me in my teen years. I remember being late from time to time, but never getting to the three lates equals a detention before my lates were scrubbed, so it didn't teach me a lesson. Like your daughter, I got myself to school.

How about no breakfast if she is not up and dressed in time? Are you or you partner at home at the time of your daughter's departure to school, or have you both gone to work by that time?
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