CPS Curwen Primary School Together Everyone Achieves More

Attendance Policy February 2014

Rationale This policy aims to give clear guidance to all staff about the management of attendance at Curwen. The register is a legal document and needs to not only be accurate but applied consistently across the school.

Responsibilities of the class teacher The Daily Attendance Register Registers should be taken to each class before the start of each session. The register will be taken at the start of every morning and afternoon session. Registers should be completed in HB pencil, marking a horizontal line in the appropriate space. Registers should be completed between 8.55 and 9.05 in the morning and 1.00 and 1.05 in the afternoon. Those children who arrive after the register cut off time should be marked as late by adding a second horizontal line. A late book is kept in the school office for those children who arrive in school after registration. On completion, registers should be sent to the school office with a sensible child.

Management of Absences First day absence calls are made by the Attendance Manager where a parent has not already advised the school of their child’s absence. A record of this is kept in a log in the school office in the absence book. When informed of a reason for absence the class teacher should record it on the absence sheet and any letters from parents should be stored inside the register. Explanations for

absence can only be accepted in writing or verbally from a responsible adult. A reason given orally by the child is not acceptable.

The following codes should be used on the sims register. L @ O B C

E F G H

I J L M N O P R S V W !

late arrival before the register was closed do not use Unauthorised Absence – These include things like shopping going to the airport, relative visiting, buying shoes, going for a haircut, parent unwell. Educated off site – This applies to children who attend other institutions such as Eleanor Smith School for some days This is for exceptional circumstances only e.g. bereavement. This code should only be used after consulting the member of staff responsible for attendance. Excluded Extended family holiday (agreed) Family holiday (not agreed) Family holiday (agreed)Annual Family Holiday – This can only be approved by the Head Teacher and for a maximum of ten days only. All notes about annual holiday should be directed to the Head Teacher. Illness Interview Late(before registers close) Medical/Dental – This is provided that a responsible adult has contacted the school. No reason yet provided for absence Unauthorised absence Approved sporting activity Day of religious observance in the religion to which the parents belong. Guidance will be circulated as to which days are relevant. Study leave Educational Visit or trip Work Experience Dfes ; non compulsory school age absence

Responsibilities of the Attendance Manager Registers The school Attendance Manager will ensure that registers are printed on a weekly basis and are available to staff on a Monday morning. The school Attendance Manager will ensure OMR registers are read into the computer the following week. The registers for the following week will be printed out every Friday.

Absences If the school office is informed of an absence they will initially record that absence in the absence book kept next to the phone in the school office. On a weekly basis this information should be transferred to the sims class register. Absences will be updated on sims weekly and as we are notified.

Following up Unexplained Absence Everyday the Attendance Manager will trawl through the registers to – Ensure that parents are aware of their child’s absence by following up by telephone or in person, any unexplained absences for the week. Check for patterns in children’s absence – For example a pattern of missing a number of days over a term or of missing a significant number of Mondays and/or Fridays over the same period. Check registers and absence sheets to ensure that school policy is being adhered to. 1st stage letter will be sent to parent/guardian if no contact has been made or if absences persist. 2nd stage letter, inviting parent /guardian in for a meeting with attendance manager to discuss child’s attendance. 3rd stage – If no improvement following stages 1 and 2, the attendance manager and pastoral manager will make a decision as to the needs of the child and the possibility of a referral to Newham Attendance Service.

The attendance manager and Pastoral Manager will make home visits to families that concerns are arising with continuous absences and lateness.

Monitoring of Lateness Daily, the Attendance Manager will monitor the late book and will trawl through the late book to pick up on persistent lateness. Parents of persistent latecomers will be invited in for a meeting to investigate reason given for continuous lateness to assess if the school can provide assistance. For example, Breakfast club. If there is a persistence in lateness after support offered then a referral will be made to Newham Attendance Service New Government Code of Conduct To follow the Governments Code of conduct as by law, Newham Local Authority have enforced the Penalty Notice to ensure we maximise the child’s access to education. Please see below:

LONDON BOROUGH OF NEWHAM Code of Conduct for the Issuing of Penalty Notices Revised September 2013 in accordance with The Education (Penalty Notices) (ENGLAND) (Amendment Regulations 2013) 2 Updated 23/09/2013 1. Purpose of the Code The Government has made it clear that it expects Local Authorities to have a Code of Conduct in place so that the full range of measures for improving attendance are available to schools. Regular school attendance is essential if the children of Newham are to achieve better outcomes in education and improve life chances. Newham Schools consistently work towards a goal of 100 per cent attendance for all children in school. Parents and carers of school-age children are required by law to ensure that their children attend school, and the Local Authority (LA) has a duty to take action against those who do not ensure their child or children are receiving a suitable education. The purpose of the local Code of Conduct is to ensure that Penalty Notices are issued consistently and fairly across the Local Authority area, in accordance with the relevant legislation, and that suitable arrangements are in place for the administration of the scheme.

Regulations specify that the following must be included in the Code:  Means of avoiding the issue of duplicate notices  Measures to ensure that a notice is not issued when proceedings for an offence under S.444 of the Act have been decided upon or are under way  The occasions when it will be appropriate to issue a Penalty Notice  The maximum number of Penalty Notices that may be issued to a parent in a twelve month period, in respect of any individual child. The Code will be reviewed annually in consultation with local partners:  The Local Authority  Governing Bodies and Head teachers of Schools  Police. This interim review is being undertaken to take account of the amended regulations and timescales (see below). 2. Background Legislation The Anti-Social Behaviour Act 2003 inserts into the Education Act 1996 Section 444A and Section 444B, enabling authorised personnel to issue Penalty Notices as an alternative to prosecution under Section 444, and enable parents to discharge potential liability for conviction for that offence by paying a penalty. Section 23 of the AntiSocial Behaviour Act empowers the council to establish a scheme to issue educationrelated Penalty Notices to parents/carers in cases of their children’s unauthorised absence, and the whereabouts of excluded pupils in a public place at prescribed times. The Education ((Penalty Notices) (England) Amendment Regulations 2013 have amended the timescales for payment of Penalty Notices as from 1 September 2013. 3. Circumstances in which a Penalty Notice may be issued In agreement with local partners, the following circumstances may result in the issue of a Penalty Notice: a) Where parents persistently fail to ensure their children attend school and attendance is below 85 per cent for an identified half-term period, with no acceptable reason, and no other legal sanctions are under way b) Where parenting contracts have been unsuccessful or not complied with, or where parents refuse or fail to attend a School Attendance Consultative Group (SACG) meeting c) Where parents are unwilling to sign a contract offering support and attendance is below 85% over a half-term period without reasonable justification d) Term time leave is taken without obtaining the agreement of the school and the parents have been warned that a Penalty Notice may result e) Term time holiday is taken during SATs and examination periods when parents have been notified in advance and warned that a penalty notice may result f) Unwarranted delayed return from an extended holiday without school agreement g) Persistent late arrival after the registers have been closed (U code only) h) Where a child regularly comes to the attention of the police during school hours for

being absent from school without an acceptable reason i) Pupils located more than twice on truancy sweep initiatives during a six month period, unless there is a justifiable reason for the absence from school j) Parents’ or carers’ failure to make arrangements to ensure that children who have been excluded from school due to misbehaviour are not in a public place at prescribed times during the first five school days of any exclusion, without reasonable justification.*

* It is incumbent upon the parent(s) in such circumstances to provide proof of reasonable justification, for example, that the child or young person needed to attend a pre-arranged medical appointment, or a medical emergency requiring the child to be supervised elsewhere than at home. 4. Authorisation to issue Penalty Notices In consultation with local partners it has been agreed that the Local Authority will issue Penalty Notices on their behalf. This will avoid the potential for duplicate notices to be issued, or for notices to be issued when there are legal proceedings in place. A Head teacher, Deputy or Assistant Head, or Police officers would need to make a request in writing to the Council to issue a notice by completing the PN Request form at Appendix E. 5. Who can be issued with a Penalty Notice Anyone defined as a parent under Section 576 Education Act 1996 are parents for the purposes of these provisions. This means:  All natural parents, whether they are married or not  Any person who, although not a natural parent, has parental responsibility (as defined by the Children Act 1989) for a child or young person  Any person who, although not a natural parent, has care of a child or young person. Having care of a young person 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 considered to be a parent in education law. A parent means each and every parent coming within the definition (whether acting jointly or separately) and should not be taken to mean that provisions only apply to parent in the singular. As with prosecutions under Section 444 Education Act 1996, a Penalty Notice may be issued to each parent liable for the offence. 6. Maximum number of Penalty Notices that can be issued Local partners have agreed that the maximum number of formal written warnings that may be issued in a twelve-month period is two. The parent(s) would be advised, within the warning letter, that at this stage only can they make representations to the

nominated Senior Local Authority officer. The maximum number of Penalty Notices that can be issued in respect of an individual child in a twelvemonth period is two. 7. Amount of Penalty and Payment arrangements The penalty for each parent is £60 for each child, if paid within 21 days of receipt of the notice. The penalty increases to £120 if paid after 21 days but within 28 days of receipt of the notice. (Service by post is deemed to have been effective, unless otherwise proved, on the second working day after postage by first class post). Arrangements for payment are detailed on the Penalty Notice. If a penalty is not paid in full by the end of the 28 day period, LB Newham will either prosecute for the offence for which the notice has been issued, or withdraw* the notice. The prosecution is not for non-payment of the notice but is a prosecution for irregular school attendance (Section 444(1) Education Act 1996). There is no statutory right of appeal against the issuing of a Penalty Notice.

*A Penalty Notice can only be withdrawn either: a) Where it should not to have been issued, i.e. where it has been issued outside the terms of the local Code of Conduct, or where no offence has been committed, or b) Where it has been issued to the wrong person. All penalties paid to the LA will be detailed in an auditor’s statement showing that income received has not exceeded the cost of enforcement, as required.

Appendix A Warning letter 1A (to be used for reasons related to Attendance or Punctuality) Address of Parent/ Carer Date: Dear (Name of Parent) The Education (Penalty Notices) (England) Regulations 2007 (Name of Pupil) Registered pupil at (Name of School) This is a formal warning that you are at risk of being in breach of the above regulations. The reason for this warning letter is detailed on the attached sheet. The reason indicated empowers the Local Authority to issue you with a Penalty Notice. The Penalty Notice would require you to pay a fine of £60 within 21 days. If this fine were not paid within the time limit, the penalty would rise to £120 which must be paid within 28 days. If you are issued with a Penalty Notice this enables you to discharge your potential liability for an offence under Section 444 of the Education Act 1996, of failure to secure your child’s regular attendance at school. If you do not pay the fine you will be liable to prosecution for this offence. This warning is subject to a fifteen school days review period, ending ........., during which your child must have no unauthorised absences. If this target for improvement is not met a Penalty Notice will automatically be issued at the end of that period. If you wish to discuss the matter further please contact me within 5 working days. If you wish to make representations to the Council you should write to Mrs R Cooper, Attendance Manager, 1000 Dockside, 3rd Floor, East Wing. London Borough Of Newham, E16 2QU. Yours sincerely (Head, Deputy Head or Attendance Lead) 5 Updated 23/09/2013 Reasons: (Please tick one reason only) a) □ Failure to ensure a child’s regular attendance at school without acceptable reason, resulting in less than 85% attendance in half a term b) □ Failure to comply with or contribute successfully to a parenting contract, or failure to attend a School Attendance Consultative Group meeting, when attendance is below 85% in a half term period c) □ Unwillingness to sign a contract offering support and attendance is below 85% over a half-term period without reasonable justification d) □ Failure to obtain school’s agreement to a term-time holiday, having been warned that a Penalty Notice may result e) □ Taking term-time holiday during SATs or examination periods, having notified in advance and warned that a penalty notice may result

f) □ Delayed return from an extended holiday without school agreement g) □ Persistent late arrival after the registers have been closed h) □ Child regularly coming to the attention of the police during school hours for being absent from school without an acceptable reason i) □ Child located more than twice on truancy sweep initiatives during a six month period, unless there is a justifiable reason for the absence from school j) □ Failure to make arrangements to ensure that a child who has been excluded from school due to misbehaviour is not in a public place at prescribed times during the first five school days of any exclusion.*

*N.B. It is incumbent upon the parent(s) in such circumstances to provide proof of reasonable justification. (Examples of reasonable justification might be, that the child or young person needed to attend a pre-arranged medical appointment, or a medical emergency required the child to be supervised elsewhere than at home) 6 Updated 23/09/2013

Appendix B Warning letter 1B (to be used for Reasons other than Attendance/Punctuality) to be sent as soon as you are aware an offence may be committed, e.g. term time leave applied for. Address of Parent/ Carer Date: Dear (Name of Parent) The Education (Penalty Notices) (England) Regulations 2007 (Name of Pupil) Registered pupil at (Name of School) This is a formal warning that you are at risk of being in breach of the above Regulations. The reason for this warning letter is detailed on the attached sheet. The reason indicated empowers the Local Authority to issue you with a Penalty Notice. The Penalty Notice would require you to pay a fine of £60 within 21 days. If this fine were not paid within the time limit, the penalty would rise to £120 which must be paid within 28 days. If you are issued with a Penalty Notice this enables you to discharge your potential liability for an offence under Section 444 of the Education Act 1996, of failure to secure your child’s regular attendance at school. If you do not pay the fine you will be liable to prosecution for this offence. If you wish to discuss the matter further please contact me within 5 working days. If you wish to make representations to the Council you should write to Mrs R Cooper, Attendance Manager, 1000 Dockside, 3rd Floor, East Wing. London Borough Of Newham, E16 2QU. Yours sincerely (Head, Deputy Head or Attendance Lead) 7 Updated 23/09/2013 Reasons: (Please tick one reason only) a) □ Failure to ensure a child’s regular attendance at school without acceptable reason, resulting in less than 85% attendance in half a term b) □ Failure to comply with or contribute successfully to a parenting contract, or failure to attend a School Attendance Consultative Group meeting, when attendance is below 85% in a half term period c) □ Unwillingness to sign a contract offering support and attendance is below 85% over a half-term period without reasonable justification d) □ Failure to obtain school’s agreement to a term-time holiday, having been warned that a Penalty Notice may result

e) □ Taking term-time holiday during SATs or examination periods, having notified in advance and warned that a penalty notice may result f) □ Delayed return from an extended holiday without school agreement g) □ Persistent late arrival after the registers have been closed h) □ Child regularly coming to the attention of the police during school hours for being absent from school without an acceptable reason i) □ Child located more than twice on truancy sweep initiatives during a six month period, unless there is a justifiable reason for the absence from school j) □ Failure to make arrangements to ensure that a child who has been excluded from school due to misbehaviour is not in a public place at prescribed times during the first five school days of any exclusion.*

*N.B. It is incumbent upon the parent(s) in such circumstances to provide proof of reasonable justification. (Examples of reasonable justification might be, that the child or young person needed to attend a pre-arranged medical appointment, or a medical emergency required the child to be supervised elsewhere than at home) 8 Updated 23/09/2013

Appendix C Warning letter 2A (Breach Letter) – To be used for reasons related to Attendance/ Punctuality. This is to be sent immediately you become aware that an offence has been committed i.e. unauthorised absence in the 15 day review period. (To be used where 1A has

already been sent)

Address of Parent/ Carer Date: Dear (Name of Parent) The Education (Penalty Notices) (England) Regulations 2007 (Name of Pupil) Registered pupil at (Name of School) This is a formal warning that you are in breach of the above regulations. Your child (name) has unauthorised absence resulting in attendance of less than 85% in the period or other reason…(specify dates, reason and attach attendance print-out), and this empowers the Local Authority to issue you with a Penalty Notice. The Penalty Notice requires you to pay a fine of £60 within 21 days. If this fine is not paid within the time limit, the penalty rises to £120 which must be paid within 28 days. If you are issued with a Penalty Notice this enables you to discharge your potential liability for an offence under Section 444 of the Education Act 1996, of failure to secure your child’s regular attendance at school. If you do not pay the fine you will be liable to prosecution for this offence. If you wish to discuss the matter further please contact me within 5 working days. If you wish to make representations to the Council you should write to Mrs R Cooper, Attendance Manager, 1000 Dockside, 3rd Floor, East Wing. London Borough Of Newham, E16 2QU. Yours sincerely (Head, Deputy or Assistant Head) 9 Updated 23/09/2013 Reasons: (Please tick one reason only) a) □ Failure to ensure a child’s regular attendance at school without acceptable reason, resulting in less than 85% attendance in half a term b) □ Failure to comply with or contribute successfully to a parenting contract, or failure to attend a School Attendance Consultative Group meeting, when attendance is below 85% in a half term period

c) □ Unwillingness to sign a contract offering support and attendance is below 85% over a half-term period without reasonable justification d) □ Failure to obtain school’s agreement to a term-time holiday, having been warned that a Penalty Notice may result e) □ Taking term-time holiday during SATs or examination periods, having notified in advance and warned that a penalty notice may result f) □ Delayed return from an extended holiday without school agreement g) □ Persistent late arrival after the registers have been closed h) □ Child regularly coming to the attention of the police during school hours for being absent from school without an acceptable reason i) □ Child located more than twice on truancy sweep initiatives during a six month period, unless there is a justifiable reason for the absence from school j) □ Failure to make arrangements to ensure that a child who has been excluded from school due to misbehaviour is not in a public place at prescribed times during the first five school days of any exclusion.*

*N.B. It is incumbent upon the parent(s) in such circumstances to provide proof of reasonable justification. (Examples of reasonable justification might be, that the child or young person needed to attend a pre-arranged medical appointment, or a medical emergency required the child to be supervised elsewhere than at home) 10 Updated 23/09/2013

Appendix D Warning letter 2B (Breach Letter) To be used for Reasons other than Attendance/Punctuality to be sent as soon as you are aware an offence may be committed, e.g. term time leave applied for. (To be used where 1B has already been sent) Address of Parent/ Carer Date: Dear (Name of Parent) The Education (Penalty Notices) (England) Regulations 2007 as amended 2013 (Name of Pupil) Registered pupil at (Name of School) This is a formal warning that you are in breach of the above Regulations. The reason for this warning letter is detailed on the attached sheet. The reason indicated empowers the Local Authority to issue you with a Penalty Notice. The Penalty Notice would require you to pay a fine of £60 within 21 days. If this fine were not paid within the time limit, the penalty would rise to £120 which must be paid within 28 days. If you are issued with a Penalty Notice this enables you to discharge your potential liability for an offence under Section 444 of the Education Act 1996, of failure to secure your child’s regular attendance at school. If you do not pay the fine you will be liable to prosecution for this offence. If you wish to discuss the matter further please contact me within 5 working days. If you wish to make representations to the Council you should write to Mrs R Cooper, Attendance Manager, 1000 Dockside, London Borough Of Newham, E16 2QU. Yours sincerely (Head, Deputy Head or Attendance Lead) 11 Updated 23/09/2013 Reasons: (Please tick one reason only) a) □ Failure to ensure a child’s regular attendance at school without acceptable reason, resulting in less than 85% attendance in half a term b) □ failure to comply with or contribute successfully to a parenting contract, or failure to attend a School Attendance Consultative Group meeting, when attendance is below 85% in a half term period c) □ Unwillingness to sign a contract offering support and attendance is below 85% over a halfterm

period without reasonable justification d) □ Failure to obtain school’s agreement to a term-time holiday, having been warned that a Penalty Notice may result e) □ Taking term-time holiday during SATs or examination periods, having notified in advance and warned that a penalty notice may result f) □ delayed return from an extended holiday without school agreement g) □ Persistent late arrival after the registers have been closed h) □ child regularly coming to the attention of the police during school hours for being absent from school without an acceptable reason i) □ Child located more than twice on truancy sweep initiatives during a six month period, unless there is a justifiable reason for the absence from school j) □ Failure to make arrangements to ensure that a child who has been excluded from school due to misbehaviour is not in a public place at prescribed times during the first five school days of any exclusion.*

*N.B. It is incumbent upon the parent(s) in such circumstances to provide proof of reasonable justification. (Examples of reasonable justification might be, that the child or young person needed to attend a pre-arranged medical appointment, or a medical emergency required the child to be supervised elsewhere than at home) 12 Updated 23/09/2013

Appendix E London Borough of Newham Children’s Services Attendance Management Service Application for Penalty Notice to be Issued Name of School or Agency Requesting Penalty Notice:

Name of school

Name of person requesting issue of Penalty Notice (Schools: Head, Deputy or Assistant Head only): Please Sign

NAME Signature

Contact Details: Pupil’s Name:

Name of pupil

Date of Birth: Parent(s) Name(s): Parental Responsibility for child: (Insert name and relationship to child in following column)

Name of parent (s) Relationship to child (mother/ father/ carer/ sibling)

Address: Contact Details: Date of warning letter 1A or 1B (Please State) Date of Breach letter 2A or 2B (Please State) Please provide the following attachments: Copies of BOTH warning letter AND breach sent out to parent/ carer Updated attendance printout showing the unauthorised absence/ G marks (for unauthorised holiday leave) Any other penalty notice documentation to support your request i.e. copy of when holiday was denied Failure to attach the above paperwork will lead to delays and in some cases PN fine may not be issued. Information on supportive measures offered to family. Please include dates of any meetings held with parents to address poor attendance etc as appropriate, and attach copy, if applicable, of any parenting contract. 13 Updated 23/09/2013 Please give details of any parental failure to co-operate: Has the pupil been referred to the Attendance Service? If so, please give details:

Any further relevant information, e.g. other agency involvement: Please send this application, together with an extract from the Attendance Register for the relevant period, copies of Warning and Breach letters, and any other relevant documentation such as official Warning Letter, SACG recommendations, etc. Penalty Notices Coordinator Attendance Management Service 3rd Floor, East Wing 1000 Dockside Road London Borough of Newham E16 2QU 14 Updated 23/09/2013

APPENDIX F (To be used by the local authority only) LONDON BOROUGH OF NEWHAM PENALTY NOTICE Issued in Accordance with S.444A Education Act 1996 or S.105 Education and Inspections Act 2006 Please read these notes carefully PART 1 If a child of compulsory school age who is a registered pupil at a school fails to attend regularly at the school, or fails to attend regularly at alternative provision, the child’s parent is guilty of an offence under S.444 Education Act 1996. If a child of compulsory school age who has been excluded from school on disciplinary grounds is found in a public place during school hours on a school day in the first five days of an exclusion and the parent has already received a notice pursuant to S.104 of the Education and Inspections Act 2006 the child’s parent is guilty of an offence under S.103 of the Education and Inspections Act 2006. To: Parent Name Of: Parent Address You are the parent of … (Name of pupil)…………. (Called in this notice “the pupil”) who is registered pupil at ………Name of School..…………. On … (or between)…………. (Date or dates)……the pupil….……….(insert details of reason for Penalty Notice). This notice gives you the opportunity to pay a penalty fine instead of being prosecuted for the offence detailed above. The amount of the penalty if £60/120 in accordance with the requirements detailed below. If you pay this penalty within the time limits, no further action will be taken against you in connection with the offence set out in this notice. Payment should be made within 21 days. If paid after 21 days, but within 28 days, the penalty is doubled to £120. A cheque or postal order payment should be made payable to London Borough of Newham, and send to Attendance Management, 1000 Dockside Road, 3rd Floor, East Wing. E16 2QU. Cash payments cannot be accepted. NO REMINDERS WILL BE SENT. Non- payment within 28 days will result in prosecution for the offence and could result in a fine of up to £1,000. This notice is issued by …………… (Name of Officer), London Borough of Newham

Date of Issue: ……………………………. Signed: …………………………………… 15 Updated 23/09/2013 PART 2 Pupil’s Name: ………………………………….. Please complete the following and return this notice with your payment to: LB Newham etc. Name: ………………………………………………………………………. Address: ……………………………………………………………………. I attach payment in the sum of £ ……………………………………….. Signed: ………………………………………………………………………. Date: …………………………………………………………………………... Payment of £60 should be received by (date) NO REMINDERS WILL BE SENT. After this date the penalty rises to £120. This should be received by (date). After this date you will be liable for prosecution for the offence and could be subject to a fine of up to £1,000. Notes 1. Local Code of Conduct This Notice is issued in accordance with the local Code of Conduct drawn up by London Borough of Newham. Any questions or correspondence about the Code should be addressed to: ……………………………………………………… 2. Withdrawal This notice may be withdrawn by LB Newham if it is shown that it should not have been issued to you, or has not been issued to you in accordance with the local Code of Conduct. If you believe that the notice was wrongly issued you should contact the Council to request its withdrawal, stating why you believe the notice has been incorrectly issued. The Council will consider your request and contact you to let you know whether the notice is withdrawn. If the notice is not withdrawn and you do not pay, you will be liable for prosecution for the offence for which the notice was issued. 3. Prosecution If you do not pay the penalty, and the notice is not withdrawn, you will be liable for prosecution for the offence of failing to ensure your child’s regular attendance at school. You will receive a separate summons for this which will give you notice of the time and date of the court hearing. You will be able to defend yourself and would be advised to seek legal representation if necessary. In some cases you may be entitled to make a request for legal aid.