BIRMINGHAM CITY COUNCIL
Directorate for People
SCHOOL ADMISSIONS AND PUPIL PLACEMENTS / EDUCATION WELFARE Service
Code of Conduct under the Provision of The Education (Penalty Notices) (England) Regulations 2007, The Education (Penalty Notices) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2013, and Section 23 of the Anti-Social Behaviour Act 2003
RATIONALE
Regular and punctual attendance of pupils is a legal requirement when a child is registered at a school /alternative provider. Parents are responsible for ensuring that any child of compulsoryschool age receives efficient full-time education that is suitable to the child’s age, ability and aptitude and to any special educational needs the child may have.
Regular school attendance is essential in order to enable pupils to benefit fully from their educational opportunities. School Admissions, Pupil Placements and Education Welfare Service (SAPP/EWS) is committed to raising pupil attendance and ensuring that children receive their right to education. The Service utilises a range of strategies and interventions to achieve this aim.
Throughout this document, references to ‘parent’ mean 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.
The Local Authority has a statutory duty to prosecute parents who are failing in their duty to ensure their children receive efficient education by use of legal process. SAPP/EWS will continue to work with schools investigating cases of unauthorised absence (UA) from school and will instigate the prosecution of cases where appropriate.
Section 444A(1) of the Education Act 1996 (as inserted by section 23(1) of the Anti-Social Behaviour Act 2003) and the Education (Penalty Notices) (England) Regulations 2007, empowers designated Local Authority Officers, Head Teachers and the Police to issue a penalty notice to the parents/carers of pupils who have UA from school. Under these provisions the penalty is £60 if paid within 21 days of receipt of the Notice, rising to £120 if paid after 21 days but within 28 days of receipt.
Birmingham City Council will administer the process of issuing penalty notices in a consistent and transparent manner, which complies with Human Rights legislation. This Code of Conduct will govern the issuing of Penalty Notices within Birmingham.
GUIDANCE AND LEGISLATION
Persons authorised to operate this code must have regard to the following legislation and guidance:
- Education Act 1996
- Children Act 1989
- Crime and Disorder Act 1998
- Data Protection Act 1998
- Human Rights Act 1998
- The Equality Act 2010
- Special Educational Needs and Disability Code of Practice 2014
- The Special Educational Needs and Disability Regulations 2014
- Children and Families Act 2014
- Anti-Social Behaviour Act 2003
- Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014
- The Education (Penalty Notices) (England) Regulations 2007
- The Education (Penalty Notices) (England) (Amendment)Regulations 2013
- The Education and Inspections Act 2006
- DfE Parental Responsibility Measures for School Attendance and Behaviour – Statutory Guidance November 2013
- The Education (Pupil Registration) (England) Regulations 2006
- The Education (Pupil Registration) (England) Regulations (Amendments) 2013
- DfE Guidance - Ensuring a good education for children who cannot attend school because of health needs. Statutory Guidance January 2103
Definitions
A pupil is of compulsory school age: From the beginning of the school term commencing on or after a child’s fifth birthday until the last Friday in June of the school year in which the pupil becomes sixteen years of age.
Section 576 Education Act 1996: Definition of a Parent
The education-related provisions of the Anti-social Behaviour Act 2003 apply to all parents who fall within the definition set out in this section of the Education Act 1996. This defines ‘parent’ as:
• All natural parents, whether they are married or not.
• Any person who, although they are not a natural parent, has parental responsibility (as defined in 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 child or 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.
Absent Parent: Any person who has legal responsibilities under the Education Act 1996, even though the child(ren) does not reside with them and for whom they may not have daily care.
Unauthorised Absence: Any absence that does not fall within the prescribed reasons for authorisation. One unauthorised absence refers to a half-day session or part of a half-day session, where the child is late after the close of registration.
CIRCUMSTANCES WHEN A PENALTY NOTICE MAY BE ISSUED
TRIGGER:
Attendance: In cases where a child has had 20 or more UA during the previous calendar year,a school may commence the Spotlight on Attendance process.
The process includes advising a parent, in writing, of what actions to take to improve attendance, the offer of support and advising them of possible consequences. When a parent fails to fulfil their ‘parental responsibility’ and attendance fails to improve, they may receive a Penalty Notice. The date a parent is deemed to have received any letters will give due account to postage time, weekends and Bank Holidays.
In order for a Penalty Notice to be issued for non-attendance, parents must have been advised in writing at least twice that their child has been absent from school. This will give the opportunity for improvement, ensure fair treatment and provide a period of evidence presentable in court. Advice may be given verbally but must be followed up in writing.
Schools will be responsible for ensuring the accuracy of information they are asked to provide.
Unauthorised Leave in Term Time: Under the Education (Pupil Registration)(Amended) (England) Regulations 2013, Head Teachers may no longer grant leave/ holiday in term time unless there are exceptional circumstances.
A penalty notice may be issued where a child has 20 UA during the period of leave in term time but no prior UA during the academic year OR where there has been at least 10 UA in the previous calendar year and a request for at least 5 days (10 UA) leave, which has not been authorised.
Each application should be considered on its merits taking into consideration a range of factors as outlined in theBirmingham City Council - Term Time Leave Guidance. Parents must be warned of the possibility of statutory action prior to a Penalty Notice being issued and a final warning letter must be issued prior to referral to SAPP/EWS. The School will include the first warning in the written response to an application from the parent(s) for leave in term time or in any correspondence to parents when it is suspected that a pupil has or is likely to be taken away during term time.
Penalty Notices within Birmingham may be issued via the following mechanisms:
•‘Spotlight on Attendance’ Campaigns. Schools,following the relevant training, are given the tools to run ‘Spotlight on Attendance’ Campaigns. Spotlight is an initiative which aims to raise individual and whole school attendance by raising awareness, giving parents/carers clear guidance and promptly using legal action to prevent further unauthorised absence in cases of serious concern.
•Leave in Term Time(Penalty Notice) Process. Where holiday or leave in term time (whether requested or not) is not authorised by the Head teacher and the total number ofunauthorisedabsences is above the threshold for consideration for leave in term time statutory action; a penalty notice may be issued.
PROCEDURE FOR THE ISSUE OF PENALTY NOTICES
• Birmingham City Council will retain responsibility for the issuing of Penalty Notices.
• SAPP/EWS will administer the issuing of Penalty Notices, collect any revenue and ensure close monitoring of timescales and equitable implementation.
• Penalty Notices will be issued by a Court Advisor / Court Assistant as delegated by the Lead Attendance Officer / Court Officer.
• Notices will be issued by first class post and will not be issued in person. This is to ensure the safety of staff, equity and that appropriate standards of evidence are met prior to issue.
• Where the penalty has not been paid within 28 days of issue, SAPP/EWS will instigate statutory action under section 444(1) of the Education Act 1996.
• Parents will usually only receive one Penalty Notice per child per annum. If, however, unauthorised absence persists the school and SAPP/EWSmay instigate alternative interventions immediately. In exceptional circumstances a further Notice may be issued at the discretion of the Lead Attendance Officer /Court Officer. In any event the maximum number of notices per parent per child per annum will be two.
• A Penalty Notice may be issued to each parent of any childwithin the household who has unauthorised absence at or above the trigger level specified within the code.
ADMINISTRATION OF THE PENALTY NOTICE SCHEME
•Penalty Notices shall be issued in the prescribed manner and any revenue from such notices shall be collected by SAPP/EWS. Arrangements for payment will be detailed on the Notice.
•Revenue generated from the payment of notices shall be retained by the Local Authority and used to contribute towards enforcement costs including prosecution following non-payment, as per the Education (Penalty Notices) (England) Regulations 2007. SAPP/EWS shall produce an annual audited statement of revenue collected from Penalty Notices.
•SAPP/EWSwill monitor payments. Late and part payments will not be accepted.
•Reminders will not generally be sent. In cases where Penalty Notices have been issued to two parents and payment is made by one, a letter will be sent to the other to advise that they are also required to pay.
•Where payment is not received in the prescribed time prosecution for the original offence will take place under s.444 of the Education Act 1996.
WITHDRAWAL OF A PENALTY NOTICE
Once issued a Penalty Notice may only be withdrawn in exceptional circumstances. The Lead Attendance Officer /Court Officer will decide if a notice may be withdrawn. In order to do so the Officer must be satisfied that one or more of the following criteria apply:
• That the Notice was issued to the wrong person.
• That the Notice was issued in circumstances not conforming to the terms of the Code of Conduct.
•That the Notice was issued when an offence had not been committed.
• That the Notice should not have been issued for any other reason.
If a request is made to withdraw a Notice, consideration will be given and the parent will be informed in writing of Birmingham City Council’s decision.
If a Notice is withdrawn after payment has been made the appropriate monies will be returned to the parent.