A mother has been fined after her teenage son missed almost nine in ten lessons.
The woman, who cannot be named, was ordered to pay £790 in total after a hearing at Brighton Magistrates’ Court on Monday.
Brighton and Hove City Council said that the 14-year-old boy had attended just 13.9 per cent of lessons during a three-month period last autumn.
The council’s educational welfare team wrote to her four times and visited her home but the boy’s attendance rate is still just under a third.
The mother was not in court or represented to answer a charge under the Education Act of failing to ensure her son went to school.
She was convicted in her absence and fined £525 with an order to pay £250 towards the council’s legal costs and a £15 victim surcharge.
Councillor Vanessa Brown, the council’s cabinet member for children and young people, said: “We will work with parents who have difficulty ensuring their children attend school.
“But as a last resort and where there is a persistent failure to co-operate with our officers we will prosecute.
“The courts and the council will take action and prosecute any parent who continually fails to fulfil their legal responsibility to ensure their child is in attendance.
“Every lesson counts for children and we want parents to know that this is a serious issue and they must co-operate with the education welfare system.”
If the boy is so determined to avoid education, I certainly wouldn’t want him in a class with any child of mine.
I think it is probably a blessing to other children who would be in class with him that he does not attend!
is Paul a teacher that was out on strike today ?
GOD forbid any parent would assume ANY responsibility to their kid !!! In Europe , parents are responsible for the kids LEGALLY until they are EIGHTEEN .This mother is actually NEGLECTING her child’s future . There are ,many things we dont LIKE to do but as RESPONSIBLE adults we HAVE to . THIS is responsibility . It amazes me that people put their kids before ANYTHING else !! Hope she doesnt pay and she gets banged up !
Kid ?? where were you educated its Child 🙂 i went to skool
Kid i think is wots on bbc2 all this week some lamb show why ever have they bothered to film lambs giving birth ? and ………. and then a young adult at 18 and then …. in jail at 21 i guess the mother of this child might not know her child was not doing the lessons he was 14