An overview of new Attendance Legislation and Statutory Guidance for schools in force from the 19th of August 2024.
On 19th August 2024 the following Legislation and Statutory Guidance will come into force
Education (Pupil Registration) (England) Regulations 2024
The Education (Penalty Notices) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2024
The Education (Information About Individual Pupils) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2024
Working Together to Improve School Attendance 2024 – Statutory Guidance
It is essential that Attendance Officers understand these changes and that their practice is line with the new statutory framework including;
The new Regulations for maintaining admissions and attendance registers – including changes to some absence coding and grounds for deletion from roll
The national framework for the issue of penalty notices
The Legal requirement for attendance data returns/sharing data
The Additional attendance returns to the Local Authority
The updated statutory guidance and the expectations on schools and Local Authorities for attendance
A Support First approach
KEY LEARNING OBJECTIVES
This masterclass will enable you to understand:
Understand the Pupil Registration regulations and the requirements for keeping both Admissions and Attendance Registers.
Understand the National Attendance codes and how they are applied
Understand School responsibilities for maintaining accurate registers and having robust procedures for responding to absences.
Understand the responsibilities for schools set out in Working together to Improve School Attendance
Understand a Support first model for addressing attendance concerns
Understand the Penalty notice regulations and the national framework.
Understand the implications for policy and practice
WHO SHOULD ATTEND
Attendance Officers who have completed the New to Role of Attendance Officer Master class in past 2 years, or experienced Attendance Officers who would like an update on new regulations.
FACILITATOR
Joanne became an “accidental” Education Welfare Officer (EWO) in January 2000 after finding herself in a 3-month contract that has become a 22+ year career.
From 2000 to 2005 Joanne was employed as an EWO and allocated to a range of primary and secondary schools. In 2005 she took on the post of Primary Project Manager, managing a small team of Assistant Education Welfare Officers, in a BIP funded project with a focus to improve attendance using a combination of strategic, casework and preventative project work in a number of Primary Schools. It was at this time seeing the success of this approach that she became further convinced about the importance of a whole school strategic approach to improve attendance (based on a clear understanding of attendance data), coupled with casework undertaken within the legal framework. In 2010 she became Senior Education Welfare Officer and then in 2013 Acting Chief Education Welfare Officer. In both roles the use of attendance data, and upskilling EWOs and School’s in understanding and using attendance data to develop a strategic plan to improve attendance has been a focus. She was involved in delivering the CWDC induction to Education Welfare Officers regionally, and the LDSS NVQ for Education Welfare Officers regionally both as course tutor and assessor and again seized opportunities to promote the use of attendance data in understanding and improving school attendance. In October 2015 with two partners Joanne established CSAWS (Central School Attendance and Welfare Service ltd). CSAWS is a team of proactive, passionate Education Welfare Officers. They are committed to achieving better outcomes for children by securing regular attendance at school.
