Exits and entries 5 min read Updated October 2026
A student who didn’t return on time: a step-by-step procedure
Almost every student who is late does come back, usually with a simple explanation. But the procedure is written for the case when they don’t. This guide helps you build a clear procedure: who notices, who calls, when to escalate and what is written at each stage. It doesn’t replace your institution’s procedures or the instructions of the competent authorities; it helps organize the work around them.
1. It all starts with the exit approval
You can’t know a student is late if it isn’t clear when they were due back. A good exit approval includes an exact return time, a destination, an escort and a way to make contact. An approval given verbally, or one that says “back in the evening”, turns every delay into an argument.
What the approval needs for the procedure to work
- A planned return time, not “in the evening” or “tomorrow”.
- Where the student is going, and with whom.
- The phone number of the escort or the parent responsible for that exit.
- Who approved it, and when.
2. Define the time windows in advance
The procedure should set in advance what happens after how long, so a counselor doesn’t have to decide alone under pressure. The times themselves are set in your institution’s procedure, according to the students’ age, the distance from home and the relevant instructions. The table is an example of the structure, not a recommendation for times.
| Stage | Example time window | Who acts |
|---|
| Late | At the return time | The counselor on shift: tries to reach the student |
| Clarifying | After X minutes | The counselor: calls the parent or escort |
| Internal escalation | After Y minutes | The person in charge of the shift or the head of boarding |
| External escalation | According to the procedure | The director, according to the binding instructions |
3. The procedure, step by step
01Notice in timeThe delay should be noticed at the return time itself, not at the night count. When the gate hasn’t recorded an entry by the set time, someone should get an alert.
02Try to reach the studentA call and a message. Record the time of every attempt, even if there’s no answer.
03Contact the parent or escortFind out when the student was last seen, and whether there’s a simple explanation: a missed bus, a late departure from home.
04Update the person in chargeIf there’s no explanation within the set window, the person in charge of the shift takes over the incident and decides on next steps according to the procedure.
05Escalate according to the procedureThe director is involved, and the decision to contact outside bodies is made according to the institution’s procedure and the binding instructions.
06Return and closeWhen the student returns: record the entry time, check they’re all right, update everyone who was updated before, and set a conversation for the next day.
4. What to document, and why it matters
During the incident nobody wants to write. But the next day, when a director or a parent asks what happened, the record is what shows the staff acted correctly. It should be short, factual and timed.
Recording a late-return incident
Template to copyPlanned return: 18:00. Noticed: 18:05.
Contact attempts: 18:06 called the student, no answer. 18:12 called the mother: left home at 16:30.
Person in charge updated: 18:20, the shift lead.
Return: 18:41, came in through the gate. Seems fine. Explanation: missed the bus.
Follow-up: conversation with the counselor tomorrow; update sent to the mother at 18:45.
5. After the incident: a conversation, not just a sanction
A one-time delay with a reasonable explanation isn’t a discipline issue. Repeated delays are information: maybe the way home is complicated, maybe there’s a difficulty the student isn’t talking about. The next-day conversation should find out, not only punish.
- Check whether this is a first delay or a pattern. The exit history in the student file answers that quickly.
- If there’s a pattern, change something in the planning: an earlier departure, an escort or a different route.
- Update the parents on the outcome of the conversation, not only on the delay.
Common mistakes
- An exit approval without an exact return time.
- A delay noticed only at the night count, hours after the return time.
- A counselor who keeps trying to solve it alone long past the set window, so as not to “bother” anyone.
- A parent who hears their child came back only the next day, because nobody closed the loop.
6. Practising and checking the procedure
A procedure that was never practised is forgotten exactly when it’s needed. Twice a year, walk the staff through one scenario and make sure every counselor knows the three basics: after how long to call the parent, who to escalate to, and where to document.
A quick check of the procedure
- Every counselor knows the time windows without looking them up.
- The phone numbers of the people in charge are up to date and reachable at night.
- After every real incident, review what worked and what needs fixing.
Want to see how a system alerts staff to a student who hasn’t returned on time, and keeps every step in one incident? We’ll show it on your own institution.
