Absence Reporting Process
Please read through the information below as a reminder of how to advise the school of any absences for your child/young person. It is important that any absence from school is advised to the school as early as possible.
Reporting Child Absence from School
If your child/children are absent / to be absent from school you can let the school know by one of the following ways.
• Through the Xpressions App by creating a new message providing the date(s) and reason for absence
• By email, emailing mearns.aca@aberdeenshire.gov.uk with your child/children’s name, year, tutor group and the date(s) and reason for absence
• By phone on 01561 400700, selecting option 1 and leaving a voicemail with the pupil(s) name, year, tutor group, date(s) and reason for absence
If you have told us that your child/children are absent via any of the methods above at the start of the day, we will send you a text to confirm we have received the message and the absence has been noted. There is no need to reply to this text or phone in unless it is incorrect and your child/children are in school.
Pupil who is Late to School
If your child is late to school for any reason – bus was late, they slept in, took too long to walk to school, were at an appointment – your child must report to the school reception and gave their name and tutor group before going to class. They should not come into school via any other door as they will not be marked present in school and you may receive a text.
Unexplained Absences
For an absence from school that is unexplained or your child has not been registered in their timetabled class we will send a text to advise of your child/children’s absence from school or class. When you receive this text, it is helpful if you can read the text carefully and reply with any additional information on your child’s absence that will help us update our attendance records.
If your child feels unwell during the school day
If your child feels unwell during class, they should speak to their class teacher who will inform the school office or first aid.
If they are too ill to stay in school, then staff will phone you or your emergency contact and ask them to come into school and collect your child from reception.
Pupils should not call you and ask you to collect them as they must not go home without permission. If your child does call you directly, please tell them to speak to their class teacher and to go to the First Aider in the first instance.
If your child feels unwell during lunchtime, they should make their way to the First Aider who will then follow the protocol above and contact you to collect your child. If your child goes home on their own at lunchtime unwell and won’t return we would appreciate if you can call the school to let us know.
Pre-arranged appointments
If your child/children have an appointment during the school day you should contact the school in advance to let us know the below information
• what date / time the appointment will be and the reason for absence
• what time they will be collected from school after signing out at reception
• whether they will return to school or not and if so, what time they are expected back.
At the arranged time your child should ask out of class and come to reception where they must sign out. You will be required to come into reception to collect your child and they will need to sign out. They are not allowed to leave school without permission.