Student Attendance and Engagement Policy

1. Introduction

1.1 To deliver its strategic policy aims of excellence in: Learning, Teaching and Assessment and the Student Experience, Results Consortium Ltd. (thereafter the College) has a policy of providing support to every student on the programme. The aim of this policy is to enable maximum student engagement, retention, and achievement.

1.2 The use of an attendance and engagement policy is part of the College’s planned compliance with the Office for Students quality and conditions of registration standards, B1-B5.

1.3 The policy sets out the regulations and processes employed by the College to monitor student attendance and engagement and applies to all students, including deferred students repeating units.

1.4 The policy aims to support students to achieve their learning potential and enhance student completion, continuation and progression.

1.5 The College understands that students may occasionally have personal problems, but it is expected that attendance is a priority. Students who are experiencing difficulties with their studies, or finding it difficult to attend, should contact the Student Welfare Team as soon as possible.

2. Definitions

2.1 Attendance refers to the expected presence of a student in a face to face or
online class for its full length.

2.2 Punctuality is concerned with time management and reliability of a student to be in class at the start of a designated teaching session.

2.3 Engagement refers to active participation in lectures, learning activities, seminars, workshops, tutorials and all forms of formative or summative assessment.

3. Underlying principles

3.1 The College has adopted a blended approach to teaching and learning for its taught provision with interactive teaching sessions supported by high-quality learning materials. Interactive teaching sessions may take place in-person or online. Students are expected to attend and engage with all in-person or online timetabled teaching events for their programme. This is one of the most important factors to successfully complete a programme. Students who engage with all aspects of study benefit most from their course. Students who are late or missing teaching sessions are putting themselves at a disadvantage. It is important that students take responsibility for achieving their academic potential through attending and engaging in teaching and learning activities, events, and seeking further help, support and advice when they require it. Students make a considerable investment in time and money when choosing to register and enrol for a programme of study. Results Consortium therefore has responsibility to follow-up on lack of engagement so that students can be supported and given every opportunity to complete their studies. Learning is a shared experience and attendance is critical so that students can:

• learn from the expertise of teaching staff and contributions from other students.
• contribute to the collective learning experience by actively participating in classes.
• benefit from the support of a learning community in their classes.
• cover all course content to enable them to meet the learning outcomes of the course.
• ensure they have all the programme information and are well prepared for assessments.
• complete any practical or group work (including working with others in classes).
• gain and develop essential skills for employment or career progression.

3.2 Reasonable adjustments may be made to engagement requirements based on evidence of extenuating circumstances.

3.3 Where a student is subject to external monitoring, requirements as set by funding agencies or other bodies, more robust attendance and engagement records may be required. The College routinely monitors attendance and engagement for the Student Loans Company (SLC) to accurately assess a student’s eligibility for fee and maintenance support and to ensure the College receives the correct tuition fee payments. Attendance and engagement monitoring are central to the requirements of the SLC, therefore the College is required to regularly submit this data to SLC.

3.4 The College uses monitoring data to identify students at risk of withdrawal or non-completion. This data includes how students engage with online learning materials.

3.5 Where attendance and engagement fall below standard the College will work with the student to identify any academic or personal issues that may have affected their performance. A support plan will be developed with the student to assist in improving their attendance, punctuality and/or performance.

3.6 The College will report failure to achieve the required standards to the Student Loan Company. A lack of engagement and attendance may indicate a student is at risk of withdrawing, failing or underperforming, and can have consequences for the receipt of government financial support and discretionary bursary support. This may affect the maintenance loans received by the student and the student may also be asked to pay back loan payments already received.

3.7 Late arrival at, or early departure from, scheduled learning activities is disruptive, discourteous, unprofessional and unfair to other students and tutors.

4. Attendance and Punctuality

4.1 100% attendance and punctuality ensure the maximum can be gained from teaching, learning and assessment. Attendance and punctuality that fall below 85% are unsatisfactory and will trigger further action

4.2 Attendance and punctuality also apply to work placements undertaken as part of a programme. At the end of the placement students will be required to demonstrate that they have undertaken the required hours for the placement in addition to any work-based assessment

4.3 Types of Absence

4.3.1 Unauthorised Absence

• All absences are unauthorised unless proven otherwise. It is the responsibility of the student to provide a reason as to why an absence should be authorised. In such cases, students should inform the Student Welfare Team and present relevant documentary evidence to justify the absence.
• If a student is aware in advance that they will be absent, then it is expected they will seek authorisation in advance for this planned absence.
• The following are unacceptable reasons for authorising absence:

➢ Holidays during term/semester times
➢ Part or full-time work commitments which are not part of the programme
➢ Leisure activities
➢ Family celebrations or birthdays
➢ Regular childcare arrangements

4.3.2 Authorised absence or absence planned in advance

• Short-term absences (up to one week) may be authorised with relevant documentary evidence. In such cases, students are advised to contact the Student Welfare Team with the reason for absence and provide relevant evidence.
• Instances of absence that affect an assessment must be reported according to the Extenuating Circumstances policy
• The list below provides examples of acceptable reasons for absence. It is a nonexhaustive list, and each request will be considered individually:

➢ Illnesses – Absence due to illness for up to one week may be selfcertificated, providing students notify Student Welfare. After one week of consecutive illness, the student must produce a medical certificate.
➢ Medical, Dental or Ante-Natal appointments – Every effort should be made to obtain appointments outside College hours.
➢ Attendance at a funeral of a close family member.
➢ Genuine family emergencies.
➢ Religious Holidays.

4.3.3 Long absence

• Students are permitted to apply for temporary leave, suspension of studies, or deferral of their programme of study for personal or medical reasons. Authorisation for long absence will not be granted for holidays.
• Long absence can only be authorised with relevant evidence. In such cases, students are advised to contact the Student Welfare Team with the reason for absence and the relevant documents.
• If long absence has caused a student to miss the major proportion of their studies, they may be advised to defer their course with the agreement of the Principal. Students will be notified either by email or be invited for a face-to-face meeting.
• Requests for long absence may include:

➢ Travelling overseas urgently due to a family bereavement.
➢ Attending a funeral of a close family member overseas.
➢ A medical condition that is worsening.

5. Engagement

5.1 Unsatisfactory engagement includes, but is not limited to:

• Failure to complete formative and/or summative assessment by required deadlines.
• Failure to contribute to, or participate in, learning activities, whether face to face or online.
• Failure to attempt blended learning materials, such as those on Canvas or other online platforms.

5.2 In such cases, satisfactory is considered to be 70%. For example, if the student completed less than 70% of the assignments, formative assessments or blended learning materials from Canvas/Moodle, they would receive a notification of concern. It is expected that the teaching staff will already have informally followed up lack of engagement as soon as it occurred, providing support for the student as necessary

6. Consequences of Below Standard Attendance or Engagement

6.1 If a student has low attendance rates, or if they are not engaging in lessons or assessment, the College will seek to explore any underlying issues with the student and put a plan of support in place.

6.2 A series of warning letters will be issued to ensure students are fully aware of the issue and consequences, and to provide an opportunity for students to improve. Persistent non-attendance, poor punctuality or non-engagement may result in disciplinary action and eventual withdrawal from the course and termination of enrolment.

6.3 Attendance registers are taken during every learning session or event. It is expected that students ensure they are present for the full duration of the session or event.

7. Student Letters

7.1 Stage 1 – Notification of concern for engagement on a programme

7.1.1 The College will make every effort to support students’ learning and this extends to the achievement of satisfactory attendance, punctuality and engagement in learning and assessment. In the first instance, they will be issued with a Stage 1 Letter (notification of concern) by email.

7.2 Stage 2 – Lack of Engagement Warning

6.2.2 If, following the Stage 1 letter, the student fails to improve their engagement in learning, without any valid reason, they will be issued with a Stage 2 Lack of Engagement Warning letter by email.

7.2.3 On receipt of the Engagement Warning letter the student will be expected to meet with the Student Welfare Team to discuss the context of the absence, punctuality or learning engagement issues. An action plan will be developed with the student to ensure improved attendance and punctuality and/or full engagement with the teaching and assessment activities. At this meeting the student should present any extenuating circumstances to the College for consideration.

7.3 Stage 3 – Final Engagement Warning

7.3.1 If, after receiving an Engagement Warning Letter the student’s attendance, punctuality or engagement in learning and assessment does not improve over a three-week period, the College will then issue a Stage 3 Final Engagement Warning letter by email.

7.3.2 On receipt of the Final Engagement Warning the student must meet the Principal to discuss the situation. The review of engagement will consider current and past terms to ensure comprehensive analysis.

7.3.3 If the student does not engage with the Stage 3 process or their engagement does not improve over a period of three weeks, the College will then issue an Intention to Withdraw letter to the student by email. This will be followed by termination and cancellation of enrolment with the Awarding Organisation. Letter templates can be found in the appendix.

7.4 A summary of these procedures is found in diagram 1 below.

Diagram 1: Summary of Procedures for Lack of Engagement

Appendix
Stage 1 Letter:
Notification of concern

Date …
Dear …

Notification of concern for engagement on a programme

I am writing to advise you that your attendance, punctuality and/or engagement in
learning is causing concern because:

INSERT REASON(s) Examples:

• your attendance is only 55%
• you have not handed in your first 2 assignments
• you have not logged into Canvas
• you have completed only 1 of 4 formative assessments
• you have been late for the past 5 sessions

You have missed a significant part of your learning. Regular attendance, being on time and taking part in all learning activities are extremely important as missing them has been proven to have a negative impact on learning and performance. This is why it is an expectation from Results Consortium, the Student Loan Company and the Awarding Organisation that you fully engage with your programme.

If there are any circumstances affecting you that we may not be aware of, please do
not hesitate to contact the Student Welfare Team for support and further information at:

studentwelfare@resultsco.org.uk

We will continue to monitor your engagement and look forward to seeing an improvement.

Further information on our Attendance and Engagement Policy can be found on the
Student Hub.

Yours sincerely

Stage 2 Letter:
Lack of Engagement Warning

Date …
Dear …

Lack of engagement warning

I am writing to inform you that your attendance, punctuality and/or engagement with teaching, learning and assessment is still causing concern and is significantly affecting your progress.

You are required to attend a meeting with a member of the Student Welfare Team to discuss this matter further. Please respond to this letter within 5 days to let us know your availability for this meeting.

We are looking forward to meeting you to discuss any issues you may have so we can continue to support you in making good progress and improving your engagement with the learning programme. We really want to help you to do your best.

Please note that should your attendance, punctuality and/or engagement remain a concern, the College may need to take formal action, as required by the Student Loan Company and the Awarding Organisation. This could result in withdrawal from your programme

Further information on our Attendance and Engagement Policy can be found on the Student Hub.

If you have any queries, please do not hesitate to contact us at:

studentwelfare@resultsco.org.uk

Yours sincerely

Stage 3 Letters:
(a) Lack of Engagement Final Warning

Date …
Dear …

Final Engagement Warning

This letter provides a final warning for your unfavourable attendance, punctuality and/or engagement for the following reasons:

INSERT REASON(s) Examples:
• your attendance is only 55%
• you have not handed in your last 2 assignments
• you have not logged into Canvas this term
• you have completed only 1 of 4 formative assessments
• you have been late for the past 5 sessions

It has been noticed that your lack of attendance and/or engagement is significantly
affecting your progress and that you have been identified as at risk of non-completion.

You are required to attend a meeting with the Principal to discuss this matter further and agree an action plan, at the date, time and location below.

Date:
Time:
Location:

It is extremely important that you attend. Failure to attend this meeting could result in you being withdrawn from your programme with termination of your enrolment.

Further information on our Attendance and Engagement Policy can be found on the Student Hub.

If you have any queries, please do not hesitate to contact us at:

studentwelfare@resultsco.org.uk

Yours sincerely

(b) Withdrawal and Termination

Date ………..
Dear ……………

Notification of withdrawal from programme and termination of enrolment

As your educational provider, it is our responsibility to monitor your progress on the
programme to ensure that you maintain satisfactory attendance, punctuality and engagement with teaching, learning and assessment.

We have previously expressed our concern about your attendance/punctuality/ engagement and although we have tried to support you, you have made insufficient improvement and/or failed to engage with the process.

Considering the above, it is with deep regret that we notify you of our intention to withdraw you from the programme. Our next step will be to inform the Student Loan Company and the Awarding Organisation that we have withdrawn you.

If you have extenuating circumstances which the College is unaware of and needs
to take into consideration before we take this action, please contact the Student Welfare Team urgently on studentwelfare@resultsco.org.uk to discuss your situation, within 5 days of the date of this letter.

Kind regards,