Children of compulsory school age should receive full time education, and Local Authorities are required to assess whether a child’s education is being provided and whether it is to a sufficiently high standard.
The Local Authority have the ability to apply for Education Supervision Orders in cases of a child’s poor school attendance.
Before making any application to Court however, the Local Authority should make efforts to try and resolve the problem without there being Court proceedings.
If the Local Authority apply for an Education Supervision Order (ESO) because they believe a child is not being properly educated, then the Court can only make an Order if it believes that the making of the Order would be better for the child than not making an Order at all.
If an Education Supervision Order is granted, it allows the Local Authority to give directions to the parents and the child to support the child in receiving a proper education. The Order can last for up to 12 months. It is possible to extend the Order for a further 12 months (but only in the final 3 months of the Order). The maximum duration of an Order is 3 years.
When an Order is made, the parents of the child are legally required to comply with any directions the Court makes under the Education Supervision Order. If the parents persistently fail to comply with any directions, they can be prosecuted.
Very often parents are saying that they are doing their utmost to get a child to school and they simply cannot do any more. If it is felt it is the child that is failing to comply with the directions under the Education Supervision Order, then the Local Authority will need to look at what additional services they could put in to help. In a serious situation where the child is potentially at risk, the Local Authority might apply to the Court for a Care or Supervision Order.
In the most recent Education Supervision Order application I was involved in, the parents elected for their child to be home educated, which resulted in the Local Authority withdrawing its application for a Education Supervision Order following the Local Authority being satisfied with the home education plan.
In summary therefore, the Local Authority has a legal duty to ensure that all children of compulsory school age are in receive of an efficient education suitable to their age, ability, aptitude and to any special educational needs they may have. If the Local Authority do not consider that an efficient education is being achieved, then the Local Authority are empowered to apply for an Education Supervision Order, but the Local Authority should do all they reasonably can to try and resolve issues and avoid there needing to be an application to Court.
Bill Wilkins is a partner in the Stephens Scown family team. He specialises in all aspects of family and child care law and is a member of the Law Society’s Child Care Panel. Bill can be contacted on 01932 210700 or email solicitors@stephens-scown.co.uk.