Colchester Academy pupils to receive detentions for lateness

Bosses at the school in Greenstead said its day commences at 8.40am, with pupils expected to be on site by 8.30am.

Assistant principal Lance Halliwell said there is a minority of students who are “regularly late to school”.

“Therefore, the academy is addressing this issue by sanctioning a 15 minute detention to any student late for school, after 8.40am,” a letter to parents, seen by the Gazette, reads.

Detention - pupils at Colchester Academy will be sanctioned for turning up late (Image: Newsquest)

Mr Halliwell, a former sergeant major in the British Army, said the detention will take place on the day the sanction was set and will occur during the lunch break.

The letter reads: “At Colchester Academy we are always striving to ensure all students make the most of every opportunity.

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“To do this, we need to ensure all students maximise the amount of time that they are in lessons/school.

“Whilst this is not a concern for many students, we do have a minority who are regularly late to school.

Warning - the letter circulated by Mr Halliwell (Image: Newsquest)

“When pupils arrive late they miss out on essential instructions given at the beginning of the lesson, which in turn can significantly reduce achievement, regardless of academic ability.

“Furthermore, lateness disrupts learning, not only for the child who is late, but also the classroom, lesson, teacher and students who are interrupted.”

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Department for Education guidelines state registers must be closed after a certain time in the morning.

Mr Halliwell said if a child arrives after 9.15am, they have to be marked as absent for the whole morning.

Assistant principal - Lance Halliwell (Image: Newsquest)

He stressed pupils will have time to have their lunch while they are in detention.

“Whilst we strive to ensure all students optimise their learning time in school, we also want all students to leave us knowing the standards expected of them in the world outside of education,” he added.

Gazette reader Zoe Ellen Giller said the decision is a “ridiculous” one.

“What about kids that rely on public transport as they cannot attend school in their own area,” she added.

But Justin Craigon praised the move, saying: “School is partly about preparing kids for how the world works and being repeatedly late isn't acceptable.”