We will contact you if we think your child is not being educated as we have a legal duty to identify children who are missing from education.
Children missing from education (CME) are children of compulsory school age who are not registered pupils at a school and are not receiving suitable education otherwise than at a school. This includes children who:
- Are in the process of applying for a school place
- Have been offered a school place for a future date but have not yet started
- Are receiving elective home education (EHE) that has been assessed as unsuitable
- Have been recorded as CME for an extended period, for example where their whereabouts is unclear or unknown
If we think that the educational provision for your child is not suitable, we will let you know.
Enforcing school attendance
We always prefer to work in partnership with parents to resolve difficulties without using legal action.
However, we may initiate School Attendance Order proceedings if the education being offered remains of a concern. The School Attendance Order gives us powers to name a school that your child must attend.
It is an offence to ignore a School Attendance Order.