Reporting an Absence

If your child is going to be late or absent for any reason, please notify the school as soon as possible. You can do this by:

  • Sending a message on the HERO app.

  • Leaving a message on the absentee answer phone - 878-8757.

Email and the previous absentee cellphone number are no longer to be used to report an absence.

We also ask that you arrange appointments and trips outside school hours or during school holidays where possible.

If your child is absent and we have not heard from you, our School Nurse will work through the list of unexplained absences by making phone calls home to gain an explanation and check in. In the absence of the School Nurse, the Office Administrator will send a text out to your whānau.

Being on Time​​​​​​​

Being on time for school everyday is crucial for academic success, social connections and overall hauora. Being late even if it’s only a few minutes can add up to a significant amount of time during the school year.

Getting our tamariki to school on time each day helps build routine and responsibility. It also helps reduce any possible stress or anxiety from missing classroom instructions in the morning.

If your child/ren are late, they need to report to the school office before going to class.

Collecting Your Child Before The End of The School Day​​​​​​​

School finishes at 2.50pm. If you collect your child/ren before 2.50pm this will be marked as an absence.

We understand that sometimes we can’t avoid appointments etc taking place during school hours however, this needs to be discussed with the office as early as possible prior to the scheduled appointment.

2.50PM

How We Monitor Attendance​​​​​​​

We monitor attendance thresholds based on the government's STAR Stepped Attendance Response. We look at the number of days a student is absent across a term to identify any patterns:

  • Regular: Missing fewer than 5 days across the term is considered good.

  • Irregular: Missing between 5 to 9 days is worrying.

  • Moderate: Missing between 10 to 14 days is concerning.

  • Chronic: Missing 15 days or more is a serious concern.

How We Can Help​​​​​​​

We acknowledge that there are genuine reasons students may occasionally be absent. However, without regular attendance, your child will struggle to make progress. If your child meets a concerning absence threshold, we will reach out to you to discuss the reasons and collaborate on a support plan.

If you are having difficulty getting your child to school, we are committed to supporting you. You can ask for support by:

  • Speaking directly with your child's classroom kaiako via HERO or email.

  • Reaching out to use in-school resources, such as our School Nurse.

For tamariki returning to school after extended absences, we can initiate a whānau hui to discuss the best plan to reintegrate the student back into school. Our Learning Support Coordinator and kaiako can also create a day-to-day plan to support your child's overall hauora and help ease any anxiety about returning to the classroom environment.

More information on attendance, including your rights and responsibilities as parents or caregivers, is available on the Ministry of Education’s webpage: Attendance.

Understanding Attendance Data in HERO​​​​​​​

We want to share a quick note about how attendance is recorded in our HERO app to help clear up any potential confusion!

Because our teachers take the school roll twice daily—once in the morning when school starts, and again in the afternoon at lunch—attendance is always recorded in half days.

What this looks like in HERO: When you check your app, a single full day absent might show up as a "2" at first glance. Please don't panic! This number simply represents 2 half days, which exactly equals one full day off school for your tamariki.

When you hover your cursor or tap over a piece of the dial a pop up will display, showing you the type of attendance (Present, Late, Justified and Unjustified absence) and the number of half days these relate to.