Student Absence

Attendance Matters

The future starts now.

A bright future for our students starts with good attendance levels, every day. Attendance alone doesn’t guarantee positive outcomes for students; however, positive outcomes are unlikely to occur without good attendance.

Our attendance goal is at least 90% or more of students attending 90% or more of the time, along with 0% unexplained absences.

Being just 10 minutes late every day adds up to nearly half a year of lost schooling over the 13-year journey from Prep to Year 12.

Children must develop regular attendance habits – an attendance figure of over 95% – at an early age. The attendance pattern set in Prep and Year 1 is highly predictive of what it will be in subsequent years.

Here are the main reasons for absence – and how to address them:

✔ Sickness – naturally, there are times when students need to miss school, such as when they’re ill. But they must be away only on days they are genuinely sick. Setting good sleep patterns, eating well, and regular exercise can make a big difference.

✔ Holidays – families must plan their holidays for school holidays, not during term time. Parents and anyone wanting to take children out of school during term time have a legal obligation and must seek approval from the principal.

✔ Days off – letting your child have a day off a few times a year means they could fall behind their classmates – every day counts.

✔ Truancy – this is when students decide not to go to school without their parent’s permission or knowledge. There can be multiple reasons for this. The best way to address this problem is for schools and parents to work together.

Education is a partnership between the school and the home – let’s work together to keep attendance high.

Student Absence – notifying the College

If a student is to be absent from school, please phone the College Office on 4081 7600 to notify the nature of the absence, if possible before 8:30am.  A message containing the student’s name and the nature of the absence can also be emailed to the College on studentabsent.mcc@cns.catholic.edu.au.

If the College has not received notification of a student’s absence before 9:00am, we will initiate contact with parents and carers.

Section 176(1)(b) of the Education (General Provisions) Act provides that each parent of a child of compulsory school age has the obligation to ensure their child is attending school on every school day, for the educational program in which the child is enrolled. Failure to comply with the obligation in s.176(1)(b), without a reasonable excuse, is an offence.

Late Arrival or Early Departure

Students arriving after the commencement of class at 8.30am are considered late and must sign in at the office. Parents collecting students before the end of the school day must sign students out at school reception.