School attendance, truancy and your child

We, along with our schools, are working to improve attendance at school. If your child is ill or unable to attend school for some reason you should always contact the school on the first day of absence.

All schools have an allocated Education Welfare Officer grouped by geographical area and if not the correct first point of contact we can signpost you to those that can help. 

If you are a parent/carer and you are having problems getting your child to attend school then contact one of our offices listed below. 

Education Welfare Officers:

• work with schools to identify cause for concern
• may visit homes and talk to pupils/parents about the problem
• try to assist with a resolution and return to school
•  where an improvement is not achieved they have powers to prosecute parents for not ensuring that their children receive appropriate education at school or otherwise. 

We are responsible for ensuring that the Local authority meets its duties in this regard.

Remember - whilst parents/carers can give explanations for absence, it is down to individual schools to authorise reasons given for absence.

• Regular school attendance has always been important and is a legal requirement for those registered at a school. Without it the efforts of the best teachers and the best schools will come to nothing. 
• Education provides a means of advancement for all young people to improve their life chances. 
• Pupils need to attend regularly if they are to take full advantage of the educational opportunities available to them.
• Irregular attendance undermines that educational process and leads to educational disadvantage. It places children at risk and in some cases it can result in pupils being drawn into patterns of anti social or criminal behaviour. 

Local Authority Multi-Agency Attendance Strategy

We have refreshed this strategy in view of the fact that attendance, enjoying, and achieving at school are important areas of children’s lives. Go to Key Documents (Related Section below) to read the strategy document.

Related Sections:

• Key Documents