Legal Interventions

School attendance offences: Section 444, Education Act 1996 (opens new window)

If a registered pupil of compulsory school age fails to attend school regularly, the parent could be guilty of an offence under section 444 Education Act 1996. In April 2017, the Supreme Court held that attending school "regularly" means attendance in accordance with the rules prescribed by the school and not "sufficiently frequent attendance ". This means that a child must attend school on every day that the school requires him or her to do so and failure to do this may lead to the commission of an offence.

There are 2 offences:

1. Section 444 (1): If the child is absent without authorisation, then the parent is guilty of an offence. This is a strict liability offence i.e., all that needs to be shown is a lack of regular attendance. Sanctions can include a fine of up to £1,000
2. Section 444 (1A): an aggravated offence. If the child is absent without authorisation and the parent knew about the child's absence and failed to act, then the parent is guilty of an offence. Sanctions can include a fine of up to £2,500 and a prison sentence of up to 3 months.

School attendance offences are criminal offences, and the Local Authority must prove the case using the 'beyond reasonable doubt' threshold based on the evidence provided by the school.

The Fast Track framework is a time-focused model of case management and, where appropriate, prosecution. The Fast Track model promotes early intervention by both schools, the LA and parents in cases of persistent absence. It aims to ensure appropriate, and time limited intervention is in place to tackle the underlying causes of poor or non-attendance as soon as it becomes apparent. It is a mechanism for ensuring parents focus their attention on their responsibility for ensuring their children attend school both regularly and punctually by engaging with them and specifying, by way of an attendance contract, what improvements need to be made. This should generally be concluded within a 12-week period.

In order to start Fast Track the following criteria must be met:

Pupils must have at least 15% unauthorised absence within a period of 6 school weeks. This is equivalent to 9 sessions of unauthorised absence.

Before you start Fast Track, you must consider what early intervention work you have already completed or should complete to attempt to engage with the parents and address any barriers to attendance:

• Have you held an early intervention meeting? Have you identified the barriers to attendance, agreed an action plan and set targets? You can use the Early intervention plan paperwork to provide a framework.
• Have you offered the parents a referral to Early Help, if you have identified that they need support in other areas or at home e.g. homelessness, domestic violence, drink/drug dependency, etc.?
• Would an Early Help Assessment and Plan (EHAP) be more appropriate? Have you discussed any barriers to attendance with the Partner & Community Focus team?
• Are you aware of previous attendance issues? What did you do previously and what worked well?
• Are there any school age siblings, either in your school or at other schools? Have you spoken to them about having a joint approach?
• Have you consulted with the Attendance Team through the duty line service?

Correspondence with parents

To address concerns about attendance, it is expected that schools will regularly communicate with parents and look to intervene at the earliest opportunity. This should occur prior to Fast Track intervention and in line with the attendance procedures in place in the setting.

Schools entering Fast Track with pupils are required to send official correspondence to all parents as defined in the Education Act 1996. The school should ensure that it has established, in advance of the first invitations to meetings being sent, all adults who fulfil the definition of a parent for the child and correspond with them accordingly. This should include all adults in the household with the child who hold a parental role and any non-resident parents, even if they live out of county. The school should ensure that the address and contact details of the parents are accurate and current.

Schools are required to inform all parents individually, even if they reside at the same address. This is because we are individuals in the eyes of the law, and it is illegal to open post that is addressed to another person. Therefore, one parent cannot claim they were not aware of the concerns being raised as they will have been informed by a letter addressed direct to them. This is essential to secure sufficient evidence for a Section 1A prosecution should the matter progress to prosecution.

Initial invite letters should be sent out allowing at least 5 working days' notice of the meeting, so that parents have sufficient notice to make arrangements to attend. In all correspondence parents should be made aware of who will be attending the arranged meeting.

Schools should use the Initial invite letter we have created as it ensures a clear legal message is given to the parents, we ask that you don't alter or change this letter but place on school headed paper and ensure it is signed and dated accordingly.

Voice of the child

It is important to ascertain the wishes and feelings of the pupil before and during any attendance process. The information you gain from these could shed light on any potential problems at school or at home that are preventing them from attending school regularly. Working Together to Safeguard Children 2018 (opens new window)Working Together to Safeguard Children 2018 produced by the DFE, clearly states that:

"Anyone working with children should see and speak to the child; listen to what they say; take their views seriously; and work with them and their families collaboratively when deciding how to support their needs."

When conducting wishes and feelings with a child it is recommended that it done with someone who the child is comfortable and has a good relationship with. For older children it is best to ask them who they would like to speak with. The time and place of that discussion is another important factor to consider, and it should be somewhere that the child will feel relaxed and know that they can leave at any time. The timing needs to be convenient for all parties and avoid times where the meeting could be rushed i.e., lunchtimes and after school.

Other points to bear in mind when conducting meetings with children is that the meeting is not an interrogation. It is a way to explore how the child is feeling about school and if there are any barriers or issues for them. This information will help to create a plan to bring about a change in their attendance. Also, these meetings have the potential bring up information that may cause concern. This will need to be dealt with sensitively and in line with your Safeguarding Policy.

The Initial Fast Track Meeting

The initial Fast Track to Attendance meeting should ideally be held in school involving parents, pupil, school staff, and other agencies as required. If a parent is unable to attend, school needs to consider if the cause is reasonable. If parents do not attend the meeting that has been offered, schools do not need to hold the meeting or complete the Fast Track paperwork. All parents who have not attended should be sent individual 'Did not attend initial Fast Track' letters and offered a further opportunity to engage with the Fast Track. If parents do not engage with the process, specific consideration should be given to how you might encourage engagement from parents in future meetings, and consider whether there are barriers to them attending the meetings you have offered e.g. transport, location, time, etc.

Where school have offered a second Fast Track meeting and parents have not attended, schools do not need to hold the meeting or complete the Fast Track paperwork. Send a 'Did not attend 2nd attempt at initial meeting' letter individually to parents, choosing whether to use the version where there has been an improvement in attendance and Fast Track will close, or the version where there has been no improvement in attendance, and you will be referring to the LA to consider prosecution. If you need to refer the case to the LA to consider prosecution, see the section below titled, 'Where Fast Track has not resulted in improved attendance'.

For parents that do attend the meeting, the initial Fast Track meeting should aim to ensure that parents are fully informed of their legal responsibilities, the statutory defences to non-attendance and the potential implications of further unauthorised absences. The meeting should seek to establish details of any other adults and their role in the child's life where gaps in the information exist. If a parent declines to provide details of other parents as defined by the section 576 of the Education Act 1996, this should be recorded in the minutes.

The meeting should explore the barriers to school attendance and any other concerns for the pupil, as well as focusing on what is working well in respect of the child's education. In all cases, the child's wishes and feelings must be sought to seek to understand their reasons for poor school attendance.

An attendance target of 100% should be set and a targeted action plan should be developed at the meeting using the template provided. All agreed actions should be individual to the child and their specific needs; plans should not be pre-populated with a set of generic actions. A review meeting date should be agreed within 4-6 school weeks of the initial meeting.

All minutes and plans should provide an accurate reflection of the key issues discussed. All minutes should clearly identify what is working well, the issues affecting school attendance and the child's wishes and feelings. As above, all agreed actions should be individual to the child and their specific needs; plans should not be pre-populated with a set of generic actions. The minutes should be signed by all attendees including the child where appropriate. Parents should be provided with a signed copy of all documents at the time of the meeting, or in exceptional circumstances, via post as soon as possible.

The Review Fast Track Meeting

The school should send out an invitation to the Fast Track review meeting at least 5 working days in advance of the meeting so that parents are reminded and have sufficient notice to attend.

At the review meeting there are four possible outcomes:

• Where pupil attendance has improved and the agreed target has been achieved, the Fast Track process should be formally closed.
• Where there is evidence of statutory defence, the Fast Track process should be formally closed but an appropriate action plan should be agreed to address the child's needs. Any outstanding issues and authorised absences should be managed by the school via the agreed step-down plan.
• Where there has been further unauthorised attendance, the decision should be made to refer the case to the LA for consideration of legal action in line with Education Act 1996.
• Where there has been some improvement, but insufficient to close the case, an internal review should be held on a specified date and within 6 school weeks (to ensure there is no hindrance to the 26-week prosecution period). No additional meeting is required but all parties must be clear about the specified date for the review at the review meeting. The parents must be advised in writing after that agreed date of whatever decision the school has made, whether they will be closing the case or whether they have made the decision to refer for prosecution.

It's important to acknowledge good changes and efforts made by both parents and pupils. A clear and accurate record should be made of the meeting using the template provided. Schools must write to parents to confirm the outcome of the Fast Track process and the agreed next steps. Where an internal review is agreed, the school should send a letter to the parents to confirm the decision reached at the end of the agreed period.

Where Fast Track has not resulted in improved attendance

Where parents have not engaged with the two offered meetings, or the agreed outcome at the review meeting or internal review is a recommendation to the LA to instigate legal proceedings, the school should complete an Application to Prosecute form and call the Attendance Team duty line within 10 days of the final meeting to discuss the Fast Track with an AEO. The purpose of the call is to establish the facts of the Fast Track case, consider whether there are any potential legal defences, whether school has missed any important steps or opportunities to support and agree a potential prosecution period. If the AEO is satisfied that the case should be considered for prosecution, the school will be given the authorisation to complete their evidence pack within 15 school days and submit it to the Attendance Team. Once the pack is completed and 'fit for court', it will then be discussed with the Attendance & Entitlement Manager, who has the delegated powers to agree a case for prosecution.

Below are all the documents you need for the Fast Track process. A completed evidence pack should contain the Application to Prosecute form, witness statement (completed by someone in authority that was at the Fast Track meetings), exhibits (the minutes of the meetings, letters sent and any other relevant paperwork), a S566 Headteachers certificate and signed, dated herringbone (both covering the agreed prosecution period only). A full year to date herringbone should also be included for information, although it does not form part of the evidential pack.

If you require any advice throughout the process, please call the duty line on 01603 223681.

Year 11 cases

The final date for schools to submit applications to prosecute for children in Year 11 is the Friday preceding February half term. The application must be submitted by this deadline to be considered. The evidence pack, when submitted, must be free of errors and fit for court. Any that are not may not be taken forward.

Roles and responsibilities

Role of the Fast Track meeting chair

• Provide an outline of the Fast Track process and the structure of the meeting at the beginning of initial meeting.
• Ensure that all parties including the child are given an opportunity to express their views.
• Facilitate the meeting so that an appropriate plan based on the needs of the individual child can be developed.
• To explain the statutory defences to the parents at the beginning of the meeting. Parents should be fully aware of the seriousness of the Fast Track intervention and that it can lead to prosecution, and the potential of a criminal conviction.
• To ensure that all parties are clear that a failure to meet the expected targets could lead to legal action by the LA and that the minutes of these meetings could be used as evidence in any such action.
• Facilitate the discussions and mapping to ensure that the meeting identifies barriers to school attendance, and an appropriate action plan to address the child's individual needs is put in place.

Role of the school

The school should ensure that:

• A senior member of staff who has the authority to make decisions on behalf of the school attends the meeting. For continuity, the same member of staff should attend the initial and review meetings.
• The meeting room is fit for purpose; the room should be accessible to all invited in line with their needs, it should facilitate confidential discussion and all staff should be made aware that the meeting must not be interrupted.
• The member of staff attending the meeting has access to and shares all relevant information relating to the child including education progress, pastoral care, and any relevant safeguarding issues to effectively improve attendance.
• An appropriate member of staff should seek the wishes and feelings of the child prior to the meeting if the child is not attending.
• A member of staff is identified to produce minutes of the meeting using the templates provided. This person should not be the same person who is chairing the meeting and/or leading the mapping exercise.

What are the elements of a successful Fast Track process?

• The Fast Track meetings should be holistic with regards to the child's experiences and evidence discussion about how to improve outcomes for the child.
• There should be evidence of the school's view of the child in terms of their academic progress, social development, behaviour, and emotional well-being alongside the potential impact on outcomes for the child in all these areas if low attendance continues.
• All professionals need to consider whether children are young carers when issues regarding the health of parents are raised.
• Children should be invited to attend at least part of the meetings and when this does not happen a rationale should be recorded within the minutes. In all cases, attempts should be made to gain the child's views.
• Action plans need to reflect the young person's individual needs and offer specific suggestions for him/her rather than be generic. Where children have raised issues that are impacting on their attendance and attainment the action plan should reflect this.
• Plans should be creative in addressing the need to engage children and young people in discussions about their attendance and how it can be improved.
• Plans should consider how professionals involved can ensure parents are encouraged and enabled to engage, especially where there are known difficulties engaging.
• Staff who know the child best should also attend the meeting - not just the attendance lead.
• Use plain English - language parents and child understand.
• Engagement of parents and child - reminding parents of the meeting beforehand, being aware of and making adjustments in line with parents needs e.g. use of interpreters.
• Invite and communicate with all other professionals involved with the family.
• Ensure sufficient time is allocated for the meeting.
• Set the appropriate tone - room, environment, equipment.
• Meetings to be chaired appropriately - include everyone and gain all views, be aware of time, and give a clear explanation of the purpose of the meeting and process.
• Create an effective action plan that provides clear and SMART actions for school and parents in line with individual needs, addressing the points raised in the meeting. Use full names/titles and clear deadlines for actions to be completed.
• Full and accurate minutes should be produced where everyone's views are recorded, using short concise sentences that cover all key points. Case history and concerns should be clear.
• Assess barriers to attendance at initial meeting and set an appropriate action plan based on these.
• Ensure there is clear consideration of why the action plan has or has not been successful at the review.
• Schedule breaks and gaps between Fast Track meetings.
• Consider siblings - work with other schools and hold joint meetings wherever possible.
• Confirm decision re closure/referral at review meeting and accurately reflect in minutes.
• Develop an alternative action plan as part of a step-down from Fast Track, to ensure improved attendance is maintained after closure.

Below you will find guidance and all the documents you will need for the fixed penalty notice (FPN) process. If you require any guidance, call the fixed penalty notice advice line on 01603 222499.

Guidance for parents is available on the Norfolk County Council website.

Introduction

If a child of compulsory school age who is registered at a school fails to attend regularly at that school, then the parent is guilty of an offence contrary to Section 444(1) of the Education Act 1996. Section 23 of the Anti-Social Behaviour Act 2003 and section 103 of the Education and Inspections Act 2006 enable Local Authorities to issue penalty notices for certain offences. These notices can be used as an alternative to prosecution under section 444 of the Education Act 1996 and enable parents to discharge potential liability for conviction for that offence by paying a penalty. Penalty notices are fines of £120 reduced to £60 if paid within the initial 21-day period.

A penalty notice is a suitable intervention in circumstances where the parent is judged capable of securing their child's regular attendance at school or whereabouts during school hours but is not willing to take responsibility for doing so. However, the Local Authority does not advocate their use for entrenched patterns of poor attendance and will consult with a school when it's suitability as a legal intervention is uncertain.

Parents have a responsibility in law to ensure the regular school attendance of their child. The supreme court concluded that the term 'regular' means in accordance with the school's rules. Therefore, schools' expectations regarding attendance must be clear and unambiguous and your policy and procedure must be fair and consistent.

Local Authorities and schools are required to adhere to legislation and a Local Code of Conduct when carrying out their duties surrounding penalty notices and making decisions to issue penalty notices under section 444 of the education Act 1996. Details of how the penalty notice scheme must operate is set out in The Education (Penalty Notices) Regulations 2007.

The Attendance Team are responsible for Norfolk's Local Authority Code of Conduct and are responsible for the arrangements in place for administering penalty notices. We continually strive to ensure a consistent, fair, and transparent application of the policy regarding penalty notices throughout the County.

Step 1: Raising Awareness

All schools wishing to issue penalty notices under the code of conduct must evidence that literature provided to parents relating to attendance, such as a school prospectus, attendance and behaviour policies, home school agreements and website information is readily accessible and includes the warning that parents may be issued with a penalty notice for any unauthorised absence, including unauthorised term-time holidays.

Your schools' attendance policy should clearly lay out which types of absence will be unauthorised. See below examples of absence that you may decide to unauthorise:

• Birthdays (theirs or other family members)
• Shopping
• Day trips
• Looking after brothers or sisters or ill relatives
• Caring for a disabled parent
• Having their hair cut
• Special treat
• Market day
• Closure of a sibling's school for INSET (or other) purposes
• Term-time holiday

Ultimately, it is always at the discretion of the headteacher whether an absence is to be authorised or not.

Step 2: The Warning Letter

Schools wishing to participate in the fixed penalty notice scheme must issue all parents/carers with the NCC Warning Letter informing them of the process; this should be issued annually at the start of each academic year and dated accordingly or if a child joins mid-year, they need to receive the Warning Letter at the time of induction. The Warning Letter that schools are required to issue is available on this page in the file section below. Schools should not adjust the content but only place on school headed paper.

It is important that all parents receive the Warning Letter, it is therefore imperative that you ensure your parent contact details are correct and kept updated.

Who is a Parent?

Under education law (section 576 of the Education Act 1996) a parent is defined as:

• All-natural parents, whether they are married or not
• Any person who, although not a natural parent, has responsibility for the care of a child or young person. This means that a person with whom the child lives and who looks after the child, irrespective of what their relationship is with the child, is a parent in Education Law

It is important to name anyone who is a 'parent' under this definition on the referral form so that they can be included in any proceedings. They should also be included in any school actions, communications or interventions prior to referral.

Step 3: Monitoring Attendance

It is essential that you have a robust system and protocol in place for monitoring irregular attendance. Schools should ensure that reasons for absence are sought from parents and that procedures are in place to investigate and resolve any unexplained absence. It is important that absence is denoted by the correct code. Once an attendance concern is raised it is best practice to address this as quickly as possible. You should follow you school's attendance procedures as outlaid in your School Attendance Policy.

Step 4: Referring for a fixed penalty notice

In considering the use of a penalty notice, it is important to establish that an offence is being committed and that the issue of the notice is likely to be an effective means of improving the child's school attendance. There must be evidence that:

• The child is of statutory school age
• The child is a registered pupil at a school
• The child is failing to attend school regularly

It should be established that none of the available statutory defences apply, these are:

• The pupil has been granted leave by the head teacher
• The pupil was unwell or prevented from attending by any unavoidable cause
• The absence was on a day exclusively set aside for religious observance by the religious body to which the parent belongs
• The Local Authority have a duty to make travel arrangements in relation to the child for the purpose of facilitating the child's attendance at the school and have failed to discharge that duty
• The parent can show that their trade or business requires them to travel, and the child has attended school as regularly as the nature of the trade or business allows, and the child has attended school for at least 200 sessions during the preceding twelve months

Headteachers should be aware that by submitting requests for a penalty notice to be issued, they are assuring the Local Authority that they accept and support that, should the parent choose not to make payment within 28 days of the fine being issued, the Local Authority Attendance Service will progress the matter in line with Section 444 Education Act 1996 resulting in the parents being prosecuted for their failure to ensure the regular attendance of their child.

To ensure consistent delivery of penalty notices, the following criteria will apply:

• At least 9 sessions (4.5 school days) lost to unauthorised absence by the pupil during the last 6 school weeks

The issuing of a penalty notice is considered appropriate:

• When the pupil has been absent for the purposes of a holiday during term-time and the absence has not been authorised by the school
• When the pupil has arrived in school after registration has closed and the session has been recorded with a 'U'
• When the pupil has accrued unauthorised absence from school and following consultation with the Local Authority Attendance Service it has been agreed that the issuing of a penalty notice is an appropriate early intervention tool

Request for Leave of Absence

Where a request for leave of absence has been submitted it is important to reply to the request in a timely manner to allow the parent(s) to make an informed decisions as to whether they still want to take the leave at that time or give them the opportunity to make alternate arrangements.

The Education (Pupil Registration) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2013, state headteachers may not grant any leave of absence during term time unless there are exceptional circumstances (no definition is given within this legislation). However, the DfE states that "As headteachers should only grant leaves of absence in exceptional circumstances it is unlikely a leave of absence will be granted for the purposes of a family holiday". (Working together to improve school attendance, DfE, September 2022 (opens new window))

DfE guidance is clear that parent should plan their holidays around school breaks and avoid seeking permission from schools to take their children out of school during term time. An application for leave of absence should not be granted unless it is made in advance by a parent the pupil normally lives with, and the school is satisfied that there are exceptional circumstances based on the individual facts and circumstances of the case which justify the leave. A leave of absence is granted entirely at the headteacher's discretion. Headteachers should determine the number of sessions a child can be away from school if the leave is granted.

In cases meeting referral criteria for issue of a penalty notice and whereby unauthorised term-time holiday absence is the only reason for absence, Norfolk County Council will only issue a penalty notice to the parents who took the pupil out of school or gave permission for the pupil to be removed from school for the purpose of a term time holiday. In all other cases of unauthorised absence, Norfolk County Council will issue a penalty notice to all parents under the definition above. For these reasons, it is crucial that schools ensure their admissions registers are up to date and accurate and all parental information is provided within the online referral form.

The information contained within the referral, along with the supporting evidence, will form the basis for any legal action. The information must be accurate and as extensive as possible.

The referral should be submitted to the Fixed Penalty Notice Officer within 15 school days of the absence return date. This enables us to keep within the legal timeframes for issuing a penalty notice.

The online referral form should be accompanied by the relevant attachments:

• A copy of the Warning Letter, showing the date it was issued
• A copy of the leave of absence request (if a request was made)
• A copy of your response to the leave request or evidence to show that the parent has been informed that the absence will result in fixed penalty notice (If no request was made the parent(s) should still be informed that the school is referring the matter to the LA)
• A copy of the attendance herringbone clearly showing the child has returned to school

Refer a parent for a Fixed Penalty Notice (opens new window)

Step 5: The Fixed Penalty Notice

A Fixed Penalty Notice will be issued to each parent for each child. Penalty notices are £120 to be paid within 28 days and decrease to £60 if paid within 21 days of issue. Schools are notified by email by the Attendance Team when the penalty notice has been issued.

On occasions a parent may need assistance to make payment, perhaps English is not their first language or there is limited understanding. Parents can call us to support with this, however, please see below for instruction on how to help with this if required.

The parent would need to have the following details for help to be provided:

• Account number
• Invoice number
• Bank details

Online: The quickest and easiest way to pay a penalty notice is via our website, please visit www.norfolk.gov.uk/payinvoice (opens new window).

By telephone: Please call 0344 800 8020 and select 'option 4 - automated payment line'. Please have the invoice number, customer number and card details with you.

Once payment is made within 28 days this discharges the liability for prosecution and the case will be closed by the Attendance Team.

Step 6: Non-Payment of the FPN

If the penalty notice is not paid in full by the end of the 28th day the Attendance Team may issue the parent(s) with a 'Notice of Intended Prosecution'. The prosecution would not be for non-payment of the penalty notice, but for the original offence of failing to ensure the child's regular attendance at school. The Attendance Team will use the fact that a penalty notice has been issued and remains unpaid as evidence. The Attendance Team will look at all the circumstances of the case when assessing the likelihood of securing a conviction for the offence.

The Attendance Team will then:

• Request a completed Headteacher Certificate from the school
• Create and send the parent(s) a 'Single Justice Procedure Notice' which allows the parent to respond and say how they wish to plea to the charge, provide any relevant mitigation and to supply any details surrounding their financial circumstances
• The same documentation is compiled and submitted to the court

• The team will then notify the school of the outcome of the hearing

Withdrawal

There is no right of appeal by parents against a penalty notice. If the penalty is not paid in full by the end of the 28-day period, the local authority must decide either to prosecute for the original offence to which the notice applies or withdraw the notice.

The Education (Penalty Notices) (England) Regulations 2007 limit the circumstances in which Local Authorities can withdraw penalty notices and the normal response to non-payment of a penalty notice will be prosecution for the offence to which the notice relates.

The only grounds in which a penalty notice, once issued, can be withdrawn are:

• It ought not to have been issued i.e., where it has been issued outside of the terms of the Local Protocol or where no offence has been committed.
• It has been issued to the wrong person
• It contains material errors
• The penalty notice remains unpaid, and the Local Authority opt not to proceed with a prosecution under Education Act 1996 Section 444 (1)

Where schools wish to provide evidence to the Local Authority Attendance Team to consider withdrawing a penalty notice once issued, they must email cscourt@norfolk.gov.uk with the pupil's attendance record showing the absences in question as authorised and with clear rationale why authorisation is being given.

This decision should not be taken lightly by schools, and we will always advise for schools to think about the implications when thinking of making a withdrawal, will your approach to authorising absence still be consistent and fair.

Fixed penalty notices in response to Year 11 absence

To support secondary schools with trying to improve Year 11 absence in the last few months that they are required to attend statutory education and to ensure that they are in school attending regularly in the lead up to their formal examinations. We have provided a specific 'Warning Letter' that can be issued to the parents of students in Year 11.

Where there are concerns about the attendance of a Year 11 pupil that a school has been unable to address through supportive measures, they will be able to warn the parents of that pupil that continued unauthorised absence will result in the issuing of a fixed penalty notice.

The 'Year 11 Warning Letter' can be issued to parents and where attendance does not improve after the issue of this letter and the criteria of at least 9 sessions (4.5 school days) is lost to unauthorised absence by the pupil, schools will be able to refer for a fixed penalty notice in the usual way. We do not see this as an appropriate intervention for cases of entrenched patterns of poor attendance, but rather an efficient tool to remind and focus parents and young people that they still need to attend school regularly until the last Friday in June in the academic year in which the young person turns 16.

This warning letter will cover the 6 weeks prior to the start of Year 11 examinations period. This is a set period decided by the Attendance Team and schools should not alter this. All referrals must be submitted no later than the week preceding the May half term. However, if the criteria is met sooner a referral can be submitted without delay.

Parenting orders: Crime and Disorder Act 1998 (opens new window)

Parenting Orders are an option the LA can recommend as part of a prosecution or a sentence available to Magistrates in s444 cases.

If, during the work leading up to prosecution, it appears that a Parenting Order would be appropriate as a part of the final sentence, then an assessment should be undertaken and a report prepared to be made available for Magistrates at the point of sentence. This could be because parenting work has already been offered but not undertaken by the parents, and a Parenting Order is specifically required as an outcome of the prosecution.

Where a Parenting Order has not been considered as part of a prosecution, but Magistrates are minded to consider a Parenting Order, then the case will need to be adjourned to allow an assessment to take place and a report to be prepared. This will need to be done within the timescales expected by the Court for Pre-Sentence Reports, usually 21 days. A suitable Parenting Group within the community will need to be identified and an application made.

The defendant must see the report during the days leading up to the sentencing hearing.

Education supervision orders (ESO): Section 447, Education Act 1996 (opens new window)

Education Supervision Orders (ESO) were introduced in the Children Act 1989 (section 36) and, as with other Children Act Orders, are made following application to the Family Proceedings Court. An Education Supervision Order can only apply when a child is of statutory school age and will put a child under the supervision of the LA, with a similar meaning and status to other Supervision Orders within the Act.

The intention is to ensure that a child who is subject to an ESO receives "efficient full-time education suited to his or her age, ability, aptitude and any special educational needs and that sufficient support, advice and guidance are provided to the parents and the child." An ESO gives the LA the right to advise, assist, befriend and give directions to the child and his parents.

In all cases before instituting legal proceedings under section 443/444, the LA must consider whether an ESO is appropriate. This will occur in all cases even where the parent's record of co-operation is poor.

School attendance orders (SAO): Section 437, Education Act 1996 (opens new window)

"If it appears to a local education authority that a child of compulsory school age in their area is not receiving suitable education, either by regular attendance at school or otherwise, they shall serve a notice in writing on the parent requiring him to satisfy them within the period specified in the notice that the child is receiving such education."

Section 437(2) of the Act provides that the period shall not be less than 15 days beginning with the day on which the notice is served. Local Authorities have the power to prosecute parents who fail to comply with a school attendance order under section 443 of the Education Act 1996.

The current Norfolk process to enforce enrolment at school is:

1. Attendance and Entitlement Officer (AEO) offers remote meeting/home visit to support admission to school
2. Following home visit AEO will write to parent giving them 7 days to enrol child into a school or provide evidence to Services to Home Education that the child is receiving a suitable education. Checks are made with Admissions and Services to Home Education.
3. If the above is not followed a School Attendance Order Notice 1 is sent warning of legal action if pupil is not registered at school within 15 working days
4. AEO will liaise with the Admissions Service who will identify a local school to be named.
5. AEO will hold a formal consultation with the Head Teacher and Chair of Governors of the identified School. If the school does not agree to be the named school for the child, the AEO will inform the Head Teacher and Chair of Governors that they have 15 days to lodge an appeal with the secretary of state.
6. School Attendance Order Notice 2 is sent warning of legal action if pupil is not registered at a named school within 15 working days
7. School Attendance Order is issued to parent - parent has a further 15 working days to enrol their child at the named school. Failure to do so will result in them being in breach of the order.
8. Parent is prosecuted in Magistrates court for breach of school Attendance Order. The maximum sentencing is £1000 fine and /or conditional discharge.

The School Attendance Order procedure can be found here (PDF) [173KB].