Absence

Where a student is absent from school, parents must contact the school on the first day of absence before 10.00am and again on subsequent days.  The preferred way to report an absence is via Arbor.  We encourage you to download the APP to your phone, or use the desktop version to report the absence.  This negates the need to write into school at the end of the period of absence.  You will be sent an invitation in advance of your child’s start date with details to access the Arbor APP.  Alternatively, you can also telephone school, but at the end of the period of absence, a note must be sent to the Attendance Officer for us to keep forour records. (This is a legal requirement.)

Appointments

Please make any appointments outside of school hours.  However, we realise that this is not always possible, so please note that students who have dental, medical or other appointments or who, for any other reason, need to leave school during lesson time must:

• Parent/Carer Contact school to confirm the appointment in the following ways.  
  • Arbor APP
  • Alternatively, email agsbadmin@agsb.co.uk
• Your child must report to Reception when they leave and when they return to sign out and back in.

Illness During The Day

A student should inform a teacher if he feels unwell. He will then be directed to a First Aider in the school's office who will decide if parents need to be contacted.  In the case of an accident, the student will be seen by a member of staff who is a qualified First Aider and parents contacted, as necessary.  (Pupils are not permitted to contact their parent/carer themselves by mobile phone)

It is vital that emergency contact numbers are up-to-date so that we can contact you in the event of a medical emergency.  (To keep your childs' records up to date, please visit the Arbor APP or alternatively, email school with any changes to agsbadmin@agsb.co.uk)

Late Arrival

Registration begins at 8:40 a.m. Arrival after this time is considered late. Students who receive a late mark must report to C1 at the end of the school day. Parents will be notified via Arbor by midday.

The Head of Year will determine whether the lateness was due to poor time management or circumstances beyond the student’s control. The standard sanction for avoidable lateness is a 15-minute same-day detention, while students whose lateness is deemed unavoidable will be dismissed promptly.

Students arriving after the end of registration must sign in at Reception using the InVentry system and inform their form teacher at the next registration.

Leave of absence in term time

We ask you to observe the school’s official term dates and not book any holidays during school time. Due to changes in the law surrounding holidays in term time (where any request for time out of school must be in exceptional circumstances), the Head Master is not expected to approve any term time holiday as “exceptional”: the granting of holidays during term time is entirely the Head Master’s decision and is not a parental right.

If a leave of absence in term time is unavoidable, parents must complete a Leave of Absence Request Form available on the PARENTS page on our website, giving at least 3 weeks’ notice prior to the absence. Parents wish to send their children to AGSB because of the high academic standard and the offer of a rich extra-curricular life. However, we can only achieve these standards if students are not taken out of school during term time. Family absences in term time are not only detrimental to the education of your child but are also unsettling on the class which he leaves behind. Any absences will be marked as either authorised or unauthorised depending on the circumstances.