Notification of absence

If you are unable to attend College for whatever reason you must advise your department(s) and complete the relevant Notification of Absence Form found below. This must be submitted to your department together with the relevant supporting documentation either before your absence or within FIVE working days of the end of the period of absence. Specific departmental guidance is given in the Student Handbook issued by your department.

Please read and take note of your responsibilities relating to absence as, in signing a Notification of Absence Form, you agree that you have read and understood them.

It is your responsibility to:

Advise your department(s) of any absence. You should follow any guidelines specific to your department given in the Departmental Student Handbook as you may be required to meet formally with an academic tutor or supervisor.
Submit a Notification of Absence Form to your department together with the relevant supporting documentation either before your absence or within FIVE working days of the end of the period of absence.
Keep in touch with your department should you be absent for a prolonged period
Make up any work you have missed due to your absence.
Agree a revised deadline with your department for any missed assessment(s) due to your absence.
Recognise that submission of a Notification of Absence Form does not automatically mean that the absence is acceptable and that it is at the discretion of the department as to whether any absence is deemed acceptable or unacceptable. If the absence should be deemed as unacceptable it will be recorded as such and count against the minimum attendance level.
Recognise that, although a specific individual absence may be deemed acceptable, if your overall attendance and submission of work drops below the minimum level prescribed by your department, then College disciplinary procedures will still be followed.
Recognise that notification of absence, whether it is deemed acceptable or unacceptable, does not constitute grounds for appeal against a course or programme failure or failure to progress to the next stage of study.

Forms and
supporting
evidence
Completing
the
form
Circumstances
relating
to absence
Unable to attend
a
Formal Examination?

This must be submitted to your department either before your absence or within FIVE working days of the end of the period of absence. Failure to do so may result in the absence being counted as unacceptable and counting against the minimum attendance level.

1. Notification of absence form

The following forms can be completed online with Adobe Reader 8 or above, they are not compatible with Apple Preview PDF Reader. Otherwise, please print and complete the form.


Reason for absence	Documentation required
Illness up to and including 5 consecutive term-time days (excluding Saturdays and Sundays	Completed Notification of Absence Form – Self Certification
Illness for more than 5 consecutive term-time days (excluding Saturdays and Sundays)	Completed Notification of Absence Form - Self Certification plus Formal Medical Certification signed by the Health Centre, your GP or hospital consultant
Unrelated to sickness	Notification of Absence Form plus supporting evidence
Leave of absence request	Notification of Absence Form plus any departmental requirement must be met

2. Supporting Evidence

The following table gives examples of the kind of supporting evidence that you may be required to provide as justification of absence.


Absence	Evidence
Illness of LESS THAN FIVE consecutive term time days	Self-certification, which must be submitted to the department within 5 working days of the end of the period of absence. Should students submit repeated self-certifications, the department may require students to produce formal Medical Certification
Illness of MORE THAN FIVE consecutive term time days	Formal Medical Certification signed by the Health Centre or your GP or hospital consultant
Outpatient’s appointment	Letter from outpatients or appointment card
Doctor or dental appointment	Appointment card
Documented personal problems	Letter from someone, e.g. counsellor, who has direct knowledge of the problem and/or is involved in supporting you
Illness of dependent or family member	Medical Certification and statement explaining illness and why personal attention is necessary
Bereavement	Formal certificate or note from family member who can vouch for the situation
Severe transport problem	A copy of online or newspaper reports on the problem to be submitted to the department within 5 working days of the problem having occurred
Court attendance	Official correspondence from the Court confirming attendance requirement
Victim of crime	Statement of events, police report and crime reference number
Involvement in a significant/prestigious event	Letter of invitation from the relevant organising body
Sport commitment at national/county level	Official correspondance from the relevant sporting body confirming the requirement to be available on specific dates

The forms are designed to be completed electronically with Adobe Reader 8 or above. Alternatively, the form can be printed out and completed by hand.

Select the appropriate form
Fill in the form ensuring all compulsory information is completed
Follow the guidelines given in your Departmental Student Handbook for the submission of the form. This will be:
Either
to print and hand the form to a nominated person

or

to email a copy of the form as an attachment to a nominated person

Note: As part of this process your department may require you to meet with a nominated person to discuss your absence and get the form signed

Make sure that you save a copy of the completed form to your computer or a data stick or include your email address in the cc box and send yourself a copy
Provide supporting evidence as required

The following table gives examples of the kind of circumstances where absence may be deemed as ‘acceptable’ and ‘unacceptable’ for non-attendance. This is for general guidance; it does not represent an exhaustive list. All absences will be reviewed on a case by case basis.


Acceptable	Unacceptable
Illness Hospitalisation Out patients appointment (where possible you should try to make any appointment outside of your class commitments Doctor or dental appointment (you should try to make any appointments outside of your class commitments) Documented personal problems Illness of dependent or family member (until other arrangements can be made) Bereavement Severe transport problems (e.g. severe disruption of train travel due to signalling failure or track problems or major traffic incident on motorways, which can be verified by online or newspaper reports) Court attendance or victim of crime Representing College/county/ country at significant or prestigious event or sport commitment or involvement in such an event	Oversleeping Misreading the timetable Paid employment and voluntary work IT and/or computer problems Minor transport problems,e.g. being stuck in normal rush hour traffic, not permitting enough time in travel plans for minor unanticipated delays, missed public transport Holidays Family celebrations Weddings Accommodation issues, e.g. moving house Extra-curricular sports activities Driving test Lack of awareness of attendance requirements and College Regulations in this regard

If you are unable to attend a formal examination you should follow the guidance in the Essential Examinations Information.

19/09/2017

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