Included, Engaged and Involved Part 1: Improving Attendance in Scotland's Schools

Appendix 1: Measures for ensuring compliance

Attendance orders

If an education authority believes that a reasonable excuse for absence has not been provided, section 36 of the Education (Scotland) Act 1980, places a duty on the education authority to require a parent to attend a meeting to provide an explanation for their child’s non-attendance. This meeting will not be held within two days of the notification but not later than seven days after the notification.

If the parent fails to satisfy the authority that there was a reasonable excuse for the child or young person’s non-attendance the authority may:

• proceed to prosecution through the Sheriff Court
• report the circumstances to the Procurator Fiscal
• warn the parent and postpone a decision whether to report to the Procurator Fiscal for a maximum of six weeks

If the education authority decides to postpone the decision and the child or young person is of school age, the education authority may make an attendance order, requiring the parent to ensure the attendance of the child or young person at a school named in the order.

The education authority may also make a referral to the reporter, if compulsory measures are required to support the child.

Parenting orders

Local authorities may apply to the court for a parenting order under the Antisocial Behaviour etc. (Scotland) Act 2004. Parenting orders require specified persons to comply with such requirements that are specified in the order for a period not exceeding one year (unless extended), and compliance with such orders are monitored by a named officer.

The local authority must consult with the Reporter to the children’s panel, before considering with its legal advisors whether an application for a parenting order should be made. Parenting orders are civil orders but failing to comply with such an order without reasonable excuse is a criminal offence.

Further guidance for authorities is available from Guidance on Parenting Orders: Antisocial Behaviour etc. (Scotland) Act 2004.

Referral to the Reporter

Children and young people^[49] can be referred to the Children’s Reporter when it is considered that:

• the child is in need of protection, guidance, treatment or control, and
• that it might be necessary for a compulsory supervision order to be made in relation to the child

Referrals can be made for a range of reasons. This could include concerns related to a child’s school attendance, as part of a broader range of concerns regarding a child’s wellbeing. As part of established GIRFEC procedures, education authorities should work with partner agencies to establish if the child or young person’s circumstances meet the test for a referral to be made the Children’s Reporter.

This action may be taken alongside other approaches set out above, or separately as part of a process to engage the child and their parents in compulsory interventions to improve the child’s outcomes. When appropriate, local measures to address wellbeing concerns have been tried and are not working or are not likely to work, then compulsory intervention becomes more likely.

The Reporter will investigate each referral they receive and assess the evidence to determine whether measures of intervention are required. The Reporter may request further information from schools and partner agencies to support their consideration. If the Reporter determines that measures of intervention are required, the matter will be referred to a Children’s Hearing. The Children’s Hearing will consider the child’s circumstances and decide on the most appropriate intervention and support, which may include compulsory measures for school attendance.

Education authorities and other relevant authorities must provide all relevant information about the child’s circumstances to the Reporter to consider, and to ensure the Children’s Hearing is provided with all relevant information about the child’s circumstances. This may include information about the range of strategies already implemented by schools and education authorities to support the child’s school attendance. If a compulsory supervision order is made, schools and education authorities should work with other services that are involved in delivering interventions made by the Children’s Hearing, to plan for the child’s reintegration into school.

Information and guidance for professionals is available from the Scottish Children’s Reporter Administration. This includes guidance for teachers. The Children’s Hearing Improvement Partnership has also developed resources to support professionals. This includes a guide about referrals to the Children’s Reporter.

Guidance is available for children, young people, parents and professionals on the Scottish Children’s Reporter Administration website.