Truancy fines branded 'unworkable'

The Government's flagship system of on-the-spot fines for the parents of persistent truants has been exposed as "toothless".

New laws mean that, from today, parents can be fined up to £100 if they are caught taking their children shopping or on holiday when they should be in school. Fixedpenaltyfines have been held out by the Government as proof of its tough stance on truancy.

But head teachers have said they have no intention of fining parents-however often their children skip school. Now civil servants are warning education welfare officers not to issue too many fines - fearing the courts will be swamped when parents fail to pay them.

Parents are allowed to take their children out of school for 10 days each year if they get permission from a head teacher. But the fixedpenalty fines were introduced because the Government wants to make an impact on stubbornly high levels of persistent truancy.

Critics of the scheme, however, seized on the official guidance to welfare officers, seen by the Evening Standard, as evidence it is unworkable".

John Bangs, head of education with the National Union of Teachers, said: "We have had the spin on this policy. Now we have the operational reality, which shows it to be toothless."

Ministers have encouraged courts to to jail parents who continually fail to ensure that their children attend school. And they brought in a fast-track system to put parents in court within 12 weeks of their children failing to turn up for lessons.

So far, however, the level of truancy has dropped only marginally. Around 50,000 children are believed to bunk off school in England every day. In the three weeks to Christmas, 1,300 truancy sweeps by police and welfare officers of 6,000 children who should have been in schools showed over half were accompanied by an adult.

From today, parents found with children who should be in school, including those taking them on holiday, could be liable for the new fines. If they do not pay within six weeks, courts could levy fines up to £2,500.

But John Dunford, of the Secondary Heads Association, said the Education Department welfare guidance suggested the new fines "won't move us on very much from where we are now - far too much truancy is condoned before welfare officers are prepared to act".

She said: "We are going to Scotland today but the children will be back on Monday, and I sought and got permission from the school.

"I have no complaints about what is happening because I think education is important, and you shouldn't disrupt their time in the class if you can help it."