Illness

You can count isolated periods of illness as authorised absence if you're convinced the illness was genuine. Please ensure the students provide appropriate evidence. You have the right to turn down a request for authorisation if you suspect the reason was not genuine.

We recommend that you apply your Learning Centre’s current procedures for illness absences for WGLG FE purposes. This is in line with the general rule for authorised absences. For example, a student might self-certify an absence for up to 5 days, but it is at your discretion how many 5-day certifications you accept. Beyond this period, the student must produce evidence such as a medical certificate.

WGLG FE can help with the costs of attending a school or college. For this reason, long-term illness is not an acceptable reason for authorising absences.

You must review any medical absence of 3 weeks or more and decide whether it should be categorised as long-term illness.

You should make your criteria for authorising absences clear and consistent. It helps to ensure that all students know what the criteria are and how they're applied.