PARENTS say their views have been ‘bypassed’ after children at Bournemouth academies were shown a pre-recorded video on attendance in class. 

Glenmoor and Winton Academy issued an apology last week after parents were asked to sign a contract with a term that included the commitment that their children will attend school “even if they feel unwell".

Despite the school saying, “On reflection, we agree with the criticism of our proposed approach", just days later pupils were shown a video mirroring the messages in the contract.

Paul Owen has a child at Glenmoor Academy, and he complained to the school after his daughter came home explaining the content of the video.

He said: “They are bypassing the parents. They have already retracted and apologised for the pledge, then went to the student directly and played this recorded assembly.

“I asked for a copy of the assembly and the school said I would have to come in to watch it in person.”

Paul’s wife visited the school and watched the ten-minute video shown to students across the schools to encourage regular attendance.

Several parents called the video a ‘scare tactic’ and said the video frequently mentioned how poor attendance would impact the children’s chances of getting into university.

One parent added: “This is surely going to create more anxiety and then lead to pupils not being able to come to school.

“They don’t care about the pupil’s mental health, just the attendance stats.”

A spokesperson for the school, said: “Evidence clearly shows that low attendance has a huge impact on children’s progress, attainment and chances in later life.

“As such, we are rightly continuing to promote good attendance in the best interests of our students, as all good schools do across the country.

“One parent has been in touch about the video, and we have spoken with them directly to reassure them of our approach.

“This is something we will continue to do should any other parent contact us. We have not received any formal complaints.”