Parents jailed for children missing school

Thirty parents have been taken to court and convicted so far this year for failing to send their children to school.

Although final figures on fines and sentences are not yet compiled, a number of parents were jailed for up to two weeks, after 125 prosecutions were brought in the District Court by the National Educational Welfare Board.

While three quarters of cases taken by the board this year are ongoing or yet to be heard, 30 of the 50 prosecutions initiated and finalised in 2012 ended in convictions.

A large percentage of cases taken by the NEWB since 2006 have ended in conviction. Of the 190 cases it initiated in 2011, 72 — or 38% — resulted in convictions, with 17 still going through the courts. The total number of convictions since 2006 is 235, out of 630 cases taken to court by NEWB.

The 125 cases brought this year represents a drop on last year but is still higher than most years and follows a more hardline approach by the NEWB to crack down on the numbers of children missing school.

All schools must notify the board of a child who misses at least 20 days in a school year and, where efforts to improve attendance are not made, a school attendance notice (SAN) is issued. This gives families a week to comply and ensure the children are in class.

However, in almost a third of those cases, the NEWB prosecutes parents or guardians because they do not satisfy educational welfare officers with their response. The number of SANs issued annually has increased from less than 200 in 2006 to around 400 a year since 2010, but NEWB Munster manager Dan O’Shea said this is more a reflection of the board and staff regularising their work, having been set up just over a decade ago. “It’s an issue that can affect any family from any part of society; it’s not just restricted to disadvantaged or urban areas, but we work intensively with a family if parents are not complying with the law.

“It might be related to a parent’s mental health or limited parenting capacity, or a lack of emphasis at home on education because of the parents’ own experiences of school.

“We try to advise and support parents whenever we can but, if they’re just not playing ball with us or if we feel they are failing in their obligations, we have to take action,” he said.