Written question asked by Jess Asato (Labour) on Tuesday, 24 March 2026, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Thursday, 26 March 2026. It was answered by Olivia Bailey (Labour) on Tuesday, 7 April 2026 on behalf of the Department for Education.

Truancy: Prosecutions

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will commission an analysis of areas with the highest levels of prosecutions for truancy, to examine the contributing social, economic, and institutional factors, to help inform evidence-based policy responses.

Answer: The department conducts analysis of data received via its Parental Responsibility Measures for Attendance data collection, which provides information on the national use of legal interventions to improve school attendance, including prosecutions, by local authority. We will continue to use the results of this data analysis to inform conversations with local authorities on addressing barriers to attendance, using a ’support first’ approach to pupils’ attendance. The department’s guidance is clear that prosecutions should only be used as a last resort, where all other routes have been exhausted or deemed inappropriate in the circumstances of the individual case.

Secondary information