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• Parents have the legal responsibility to ensure their child regularly attends school.
• As an alternative to prosecution, authorised Local Authority staff, police officers and Headteachers can issue Penalty Notices to parents/carers of children who are not attending school regularly.  The penalty for non-attendance at school is £50, rising to £100 if not paid within 28 days.  If you fail to pay a penalty fine, you will be prosecuted in the Magistrates court under Section 444 or 444(1A) of the Education Act 1996.
• The Local Authority may prosecute you (without the use of a Penalty Notice first) and this could result in a more serious penalty.  You could get a fine of up to £2,500, a community order or, in extreme cases, a jail sentence of up to three months.  If the court thinks it will help to stop your child missing school, it may also impose a parenting order.
• A parenting order is a court order, which requires you to attend parenting education or support classes.  You will aso have to do whatever the court says in necessary to improve your child's behaviour and attendance at school.

If you would like further information regarding the legal consequences that may be taken for non-attendance at school, please feel free to contact us.