Attendance Strategy Team

Provided by Education Leeds

  1. Purpose of the service
         (click to expand)

    • The aim of the Attendance Strategy Team is to promote equality of opportunity in education for all children and young people of compulsory school age, by ensuring that they are able to access and take full advantage of the education provision available to them.  Our work involves working closely with children and young people, their families, carers, schools and other Children’s Services to promote and enforce where necessary regular attendance at school or alternative education provision. The welfare of the child is paramount and at the centre of all our work, which includes working to local Child Protection and Safeguarding policy and procedure and championing the needs of vulnerable children and young people. 

      We work within the legal parameters of the data sharing and Data Protection Legislation, and to a professional code of conduct developed by the service. We proactively seek and welcome feedback from Service users. 

      All frontline staff within the team are expected to work to the Children’s Services National Occupational Standards (NOS) and Common Core, equivalent to the LDSS NVQ Level 4. 

      The team is part of the Inclusion and Improvement team of Education Leeds and  contributes to the wider School Improvement  agenda.

  2. Description of the service
         (click to expand)

    • Statutory responsibilities

      • The Service has a statutory responsibility to ensure that all children of compulsory school age have access to education provision in accordance with their age, ability and aptitude and any special needs they may have.  The Service also has a statutory responsibility to enforce regular attendance at school (or alternative provision), through the courts where necessary.  The following will be provided at no charge:

        • School Attendance

          • Support, advice and guidance to schools, pupils, families and other agencies regarding school attendance issues (including consultation, individual case work, group work and attendance initiatives).
        • Facilitate home-links
          • The fostering of good relationships between families, schools and Education Leeds, to improve communication ,co-operation and resolve difficulties impacting on attendance.
        • Legal action
          • Enforcement of Education and Anti-Social Behaviour Legislation regarding poor attendance (in partnership with Legal Services and Magistrates).
        • Child Employment
          • To regulate and oversee the work permit application process, identify and investigate (including recourse to legal action where necessary) cases of illegal child employment.
        •  Child Entertainment
          • To regulate and oversee the entertainment licences process for pupils involved in public performances (including Chaperones).
        • Elective Home Education
          • To jointly manage the process and database of children being educated other than at school (alongside EOTAS) and to investigate cases where the education provision if felt to be inappropriate with the child's needs (in accordance with Education Act 1996 and Children Act (amended 2004).
        • Child Protection (Safeguarding Children and Young People)
          • Support to Child Protection co-ordinators and Social Services in the reporting and investigation of Children Protection concerns.  Advice, guidance and support to schools where Child Protection concerns exist.
        • Children at risk of missing education (CME)
          • (Families/children of compulsory school age whose whereabouts becomes unknown or children who are not accessing appropriate education provision) - to oversee the identification, tracking of individual pupils from the Leeds area and other LAs, scrutiny of National S2S website and supporting the Admissions fair and equal access procedures.
        • Attendance, Behaviour and Anti-bullying
          • Advice, guidance, challenge and model practice relating to school Attendance, Behaviour and Anti-bullying policy, procedure and practice.
    • Service specification

      • The following services are provided to Area Management Boards/ schools and are at no cost at present:

        • Specialist advice relating to all aspects of school attendance (including Attendance improvement policy and procedure and Anti-bullying).

        • Local Authority and Children’s Services lead on the development, monitoring and reporting in relation of the Attendance Strategy, Ant-bullying Strategy and Children Missing Education Strategy.

        • Early identification, investigation and assessment of school attendance concerns including solution-focussed casework , parenting support work , anti-bullying work, attendance initiatives, local and City wide Truancy Sweeps and legal action where necessary.

        • Targeted support, monitoring, challenge and intervention for pupils and schools with low levels of attendance and high levels of persistent absence, including individual casework, group work , attendance audits, attendance improvement  planning (RAGs), and whole area/school initiatives aimed at improving school attendance and raising standards and achievement.

        • Efficient and effective deployment of specialist resources based on a local delivery model of targeted needs and through a Service Level Agreement with Area Management Boards/partnerships outlining service provision and deployment of guidance in relation to the management of statutory orders (e.g. Parenting Orders) resources, joint accountability and strategies to improve attendance.

        • Specialist advice, guidance and support (including training, action planning and challenging poor practice) to schools where attendance is identified as a key issue, including Pre and Post-Ofsted action planning.

        • Promote, support  and facilitate effective partnerships with schools, parents, carers, children and young people, voluntary sector, colleges, health, social services, police ,other key children’s services and businesses.

        • To support children’s services workforce reforms by providing professional, cultural and linguistic role models (including PATH traineeship scheme and supervision/ training for Social Work and Police students).

        • Provide regularly updated policy , procedure guidance to schools, including education legislation and best practice guidance and publications.

        • Provide training/training materials and group work relating to all aspects of  school attendance/attendance strategies (e.g. parenting support work, governor training, attendance leaders in school training, training for  magistrates etc).

        • Develop, promote and publicise innovative city wide attendance and Anti-bullying campaigns and initiatives, through the Attendance Champions Team.

        • The supervision and management of statutory orders relating to school attendance e.g Parenting Orders, Education Supervision Orders, Community Rehabilitation Orders (with Probation).

        • The issuing and management of Penalty Notices for poor attendance and exclusions.

        • The team aims to contribute significantly towards the 5 outcomes (Every Child Matters: Change for Children Framework) for children and young people in Leeds with particular regard to improved attendance/access to education, enjoying and achieving at school and staying safe.

    • Service standards

      • The Attendance Strategy Team and staff work to the Education Leeds Corporate Service Standards. In addition to these corporate standards, the team also works to its’ own professional Code of Conduct which is available in leaflet form for all customers.

        The Team proactively monitors and evaluates performance against the corporate Service standards, the team Code of Conduct and National Occupational Standards (NOS) through the following:

        • Team feedback (as per the Code of Conduct)

        • Service Level Agreement meetings with AMBs/ schools

        • Parental/School questionnaires regarding Attendance/Service Delivery

        • Event evaluation forms (e.g. training, conferences, Attendance Champions and Anti-bullying etc.

        • Administration monitoring processes (e.g. response times)

        • Half termly supervision (all AST staff) and performance management processes.

        • Attendance development meetings with AMBs/schools.

        • Feedback from Legal Services/Magistrates regarding legal processes and individual cases.

        • Quality Assurance of all active cases through the 5 Stage Process and the multi-disciplinary Attendance Advisory Panel (stage 4).

        • Children's Services outcomes meetings.

    • AST Code of Conduct

      • The Attendance Strategy Team regards the education needs and progress of children as the two most important considerations in our work.  We aim to work in partnership with children and young people, families/carers, and schools in order to help every child and learner to be successful and high achieving:

        • The voice of the child is paramount in all AST work.

        • We actively seek to involve children, parents/carers and schools in planning the way forward for the child.

        • We aim to work with parental co-operation.

        • We aim to give full information about what to expect from our services.

        • Whilst we work in close partnership with AMBs, schools and other children's services, we will respect your request for confidentiality unless there are certain exceptional circumstances in which we would have to pass on information.

        • We aim to keep you informed about what we are doing and why.

        • We will ensure that legal processes are followed equally and fairly and are subject to quality assurance and scrutiny procedures.

        • We will ensure that parents/carers rights are protected through appropriate use of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act (PACE).

  3. Contact Details
         (click to expand)

    • Head of Attendance Strategy Team
      Jane Hall,       Integrated Children’s Services Manager Attendance Strategy
       Telephone
      0113 2475793
      Fax
      0113 2475709
      Email
      jane.hall@educationleeds.co.uk 
      Address
      Attendance Strategy Team, Merrion House, 9th floor West, 110 Merrion Centre, Leeds, LS2 8DT

      North East, North West and East of the City
       Attendance Manager
      Sandra Pearson
       Telephone
      0113 2746711
      Fax
      0113 2746755
      Email
      sandra.pearson@educationleeds.co.uk
      Address
      Attendance Strategy Team, West Park Centre, Spen Lane, Leeds, LS16 5BE

      South and West of the City
       Attendance Manager
      Colin Whiteley
       Telephone
      0113 2393249
      Fax
      0113 2568502
      Email
      colin.s.whiteley@educationleeds.co.uk
      Address
      Attendance Strategy Team, South Pudsey Community Centre, Kent Road, Leeds, LS28 9BN

      Attendance Champions City Wide
      Attendance Champions Coordinator
      John Normington
       Telephone
      0113 2560555
      Fax 
      0113 2568502
      Email
      educ.attendance.champions@educationleeds.co.uk

      For general information on the Attendance Strategy Team please contact the Attendance Administrator Lea Valenti.
      Email
      lea.valenti@educationleeds.co.uk