MORE parents are ending up in court for failing to make sure their children go to school as tens of thousands of pupils are marked as regularly absent.
New figures supplied to the Worcester News under the Freedom of Information Act, show 34 Worcestershire parents or guardians were prosecuted for failing to secure their child’s attendance at school in the last financial year – and every one of them ended up in court.
More than 15,000 pupils are ‘persistently absent’ in Worcestershire as Worcester’s MP warns that a provision crisis looms for children with special educational needs or disabilities (SEND).
Figures on persistently absent pupils
More than 2,300 pupils are ‘severely absent’.
In total, 34 parents across Worcestershire were prosecuted in 2025/6 for failing to secure their child’s regular attendance at school with court action brought under the Education Act 1996.
This was a notable rise from 2024/25 when there were 13 prosecutions and from 2023/24 when there were 29 prosecutions.
CHANGE: Worcester MP, Tom Collins, says he is concerned about the numbers of absent pupils and argues the education system needs ‘deep change’ (Image: NQ)
Worcester’s Labour MP Tom Collins said: “As a parent myself, I’m naturally concerned by these numbers. Nobody wants to see children unnecessarily missing school – nor do we want to see families facing fines or prosecutions for school absence.”
Mr Collins said families were facing financial pressure which was why the government was working to create breathing room in the latest budget.
SEND provision crisis an issue
He added: “Many children are finding school difficult for a range of reasons, and many of these are tied to our crisis in provision for children with Special Educational Needs or Disabilities (SEND) here in Worcestershire.
“I’m pleased that the Government has just announced that it is writing off 90 per cent of the County Council’s debt in this area – but the Council now need to step up and work with schools to make them genuinely accessible to all children.
“I also think that our education system needs some deep change. We are focussing on handwriting and spelling when our children will be working in the age of AI.
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“We are failing to teach them vital skills in teamwork, leadership and problem solving that they will need in their working lives (and in the playground!). We focus on exams, not on children reaching their own full potential, nor enjoying their education. The science shows us that this needs to change, and I regularly raise this here in Westminster.”
Mr Collins said the figures missed out children who are out of school altogether.
“We mustn’t forget them either. I think these figures point to a need to address long-standing problems that we have inherited both nationally and locally,” he said.
SHORTAGES: Cllr Alex Mace has highlighted severe shortages in SEND schools in Worcestershire as an issue (Image: Supplied by the Green Party)
Cllr Alex Mace, co-leader of the Green Group, said: “The raw numbers on school absence and prosecutions only tell part of the story, and the reasons can be varied: many children in Worcestershire can’t get support without first getting an Education, Health and Care Plan, and even once those are in place, we have severe shortages in SEND schools in the county, with children being sent out of county.
“Then there are parents who are fined for things like going away in half term, and choosing to “slow” travel to reduce their carbon footprint. Overall what we can say is the system isn’t working: services need to be funded by the Labour Government to support each child in the way they need as soon as need becomes clear, class sizes need to be reduced to allow better support and schools need to have flexibility to help parents reduce their climate impact.”
Fixed penalty notices for parents
Thousands of fixed penalty notices have also been handed out to parents for unauthorised school absences – 1,599 in 2025/6, down from the previous year when 2,139 fines were issued.
However, the data shows no parenting orders were issued in the last three financial years. These are statutory court measures designed to support parents and guardians when a child or young person is involved in offending, antisocial behaviour or persistent school truancy.
In total, 1,797 referrals were made to the council’s attendance enforcement team in 2025/6 compared to 2,240 in 2024/35 and 1,055 in 2023/24.
Meanwhile, 15,109 children were classed as ‘persistently absent’ in 2025/6 compared to 15,589 in 2024/25 and 18,740 in 2023/24. A persistently absent child is a pupil of compulsory school age whose overall attendance drops to 90 per cent or less across the school year.
Attendance rates by district shows Redditch worst
In total, 2,392 children were identified as ‘severely absent’ in 2025/6 compared to 2,252 in 2024/25 and 2,149 in 2023/24. A severely absent child is defined as a pupil who misses 50 per cent or more of their possible school sessions.
The poorest attendance rate in Worcestershire was consistently recorded in Redditch. In 2025/6, the highest attendance rate was recorded in Malvern (93.10 per cent), followed by Wychavon (92.84 per cent), Bromsgrove (92.41 per cent), Worcester (92.16 per cent), Wyre Forest (92.02 per cent) and Redditch (92 per cent).
We approached Worcestershire County Council for comment.
