Absences

If your child is going to be absent from school please let the school know as soon as possible.

If your learner is leaving school grounds during the day, or arriving late, please contact us using our app, by phone (+64 3 930 0080), or email absences@rollestoncollege.nz by 8:30am on the day of the absence.

We need the following details:

• Learner's name
• Ako/Advisory group
• Length of absence (whole day, part day, arriving late, leaving early)
• Reason for absence. 

All unexplained absences are followed up on with parents/caregivers.

Learners who arrive late during block one should sign in for a late slip at student services or the library. If they're arriving and leaving over the course of the day, they need to sign in and out of student services at the main reception desk.

Learners leaving school during the day should report to student services. We will check if you have advised us of their absence, and if not, we will call you to confirm.

Holidays during term time

Please remember to contact your learner's Ako/Advisory coach if you are planning on taking them out of school for a holiday during term time. This information is added to your learner's Kamar, so that their attendance is marked correctly for the time that they are away.

When you contact the school to advise us of holiday during term time, you will receive a letter from us, outlining the Ministry of Education policy on such absences, the impact on learning, and other details. Please note that teachers are not obligated to provide extra work or "catch-up" materials to learners who take holidays during the term.

Such voluntary absences during term time are recorded on learners' attendance record as "G" (holiday during term time), which is an unjustified absence on the Ministry's coding system.

Our absence management plan

Please read our attendance management plan for 2026. This plan is reviewed biannually.