Why your child must go to school | School attendance and absence

School attendance and absence

Coronavirus (COVID-19) – schools

Check the website of your child's primary school, secondary school or special school for latest information and advice. For general guidance, go to GOV.UK: what parents and carers need to know about early years providers, schools and colleges.

Parents and carers have a legal duty to make sure that their children receive full-time education. School attendance is vital in a child's educational and social development.

Truancy, or by being absent from school without reasonable justification, means your child:

misses out on valuable teaching
runs the risk of becoming a victim of crime or getting involved in crime
develops bad habits of poor reliability and time-keeping, which risks long-term unemployment

Employers found illegally employing school children are liable to prosecution and a fine of up to £1,000.

Parents and carers can be prosecuted, fined or even sent to prison if either:

they don't make their children attend school regularly and punctually
they condone their children's absence from school without reasonable justification