Arrival, registration and attendance procedures

When should my daughter arrive for school?

Your daughter must be in her form room by the 8.30 am bell for morning registration. All girls should use the pupil entrance. For safety reasons they are not allowed to use the car park entrance.

What should I do if my daughter is ill?

On the first day of any absence and on any further days of absence you should telephone the school office, before 9.00 am please, on 020 7603 2288 and, on her return, your daughter should bring a written explanation addressed to her tutor. If your daughter is away for more than eight consecutive days, you should provide a medical certificate. You must inform us immediately if a girl develops, or is in contact with, an infectious disease. For the duration of such illness the pupil will not be able to to attend school without the consent of the school’s medical officer.

What should I do if I wish to request absence for my daughter?

For medical and dental appointments, music/drama exams and auditions which cannot take place at any other time and for religious occasions, we routinely give permission but a note must be sent to your daughter's tutor, giving as much notice as possible.

Please address all other requests for absence to the High Mistress with the expectation of a reply because, to be authorised, absence needs to have consent from both home and school. As far as possible, please make all requests at least two weeks in advance to allow time for the High Mistress to reply and so that all relevant staff can be advised. Permission will not normally be given for family holidays within term time, attending Wimbledon and so forth.

What should my daughter do if she is late for school?

If your daughter misses registration she must sign the late sheets in reception. She should then join assembly. Any girl arriving after 9.30 am must provide an explanatory letter from home.

If a girl is late without valid reason on more than two occasions during one half term, she will be asked to report to her tutor at 8.00 am on the next available day.

What should my daughter do if she arrives before 8.00 am?

Pupils should not normally arrive at school before 8.00 am, but if they do, they should enter by the concourse pupil entrance. They should go immediately to the dining room or to the music wing if they are having a music lesson or official music practice. They should not be elsewhere in the school before 8.00 am. Please be aware that girls are not supervised before 8am.

What should my daughter do if she wishes to stay in school after 4.00 pm?

Those who remain in the school at the end of the afternoon are expected to remain in one of the libraries or in the IT department in the Mercers' building, unless they are engaged in music practice, drama rehearsal, society meetings or sporting events.

Girls waiting for parents to collect them after school should wait in the dining room. Girls should not return to form rooms after 4.15 pm and are normally expected to leave the school by 5.45 pm. Locker rooms are normally closed to them after 5.45 pm. It is important that they collect all the possessions they wish to take home from form rooms and locker rooms before these times.

It is very important for safety and security reasons that we should be able to locate girls who are on the premises outside normal school times and we would be grateful for your help in reinforcing these arrangements.

What should I do if I am late to collect my daughter?

Please contact the school office on 0207 603 2288 as soon as possible.