A safe, just and equal world for women

Dear Rt Hon Shabana Mahmood M and Rt Hon Bridget Phillipson MP, 

Every parent wants the best for their child. They want to keep them safe, give them the best start in life, and make sure that they have everything they need to be happy and healthy. 

For many parents though, there are factors which make things tough for their family. This could be their child’s mental health and wellbeing – 11% of children in the UK report low wellbeing and our teenagers have the lowest life satisfaction in Europe [1].  

It might be that their child has additional educational needs. Over 1.2m pupils – 13.6% – in English schools have identified Special Educational Needs, a third of whom have the highest level of need [2].

Or it could be that there is instability at home. Domestic abuse remains the most common factor identified by social workers as being relevant in a child protection case [3].

Lack of services 

Despite the very high prevalence of these issues for parents and children, the services that should exist to support them have been decimated over the past 15 years.

Children in some areas are waiting for a year or longer to access SEND support [4]. The number of children referred to CAMHS rose by 53% between 2019 and 2022 to over 1.2 million [5]. Less than a third of survivors of domestic abuse reported in 2022 that they were able to get support for their children [6].  

Consequences 
These issues are just a snapshot of the systemic challenges that families are facing. Poverty, discrimination, bullying, and children with caring responsibilities all play a role in the complex web of disadvantage which may impact children and families.  
These factors can all lead to a child’s persistent absence from school. We all know that school attendance is essential for children’s education, as well as their social, emotional, and personal development. 

These barriers however can make it really tough for parents to get their children to school. We know that it’s not from lack of trying, but because the thought of school can be just too much for some youngsters to cope with. 

And instead of reaching out a helping hand to families who are struggling, the system gives parents a criminal record.  

Over 21,000 prosecutions and 18,000 convictions for truancy were recorded in 2023 and 70% were against women [7]. This imbalance has been consistent for years, despite government promises to tackle this inequality.  

A criminal conviction can completely derail a woman’s life, particularly if she has children. It could lead to the loss of her employment, her home, and custody of her children. This damage takes years to rebuild and does little to improve the root causes of absenteeism.  

What do we want? 

We know that schools and local authorities face significant challenges and often do not have the resources needed to help families access vital support. Prosecution only seeks to further damage the relationship between families and schools, lessening trust in the system which should exist to support them.    

So we are asking you, Shabana, as Lord Chancellor, to amend the Education Act 1996 to remove the criminal offence of truancy.  
And we are asking you, Bridget, to use the proposed Children’s Wellbeing Bill to fund and embed support services for children and their families facing multiple disadvantages which lead them to be persistently absent.  

Will you work with us and your colleagues in parliament to make these changes for children and families?