Managing attendance - the three-stage approach
Stage two - Formal attendance action
Where attendance has not improved following stage one attendance action, the lead professional, in line with any agreed plans agreed at stage one, will proceed to formal action. Stage two attendance action would usually be the threshold for consultation with a Senior Education Welfare Officer (SEWO) within EIT.
A consultation can be sought by sending a request to the FEH inbox at earlyhelp@southwark.gov.uk or calling the EIT duty line on 0207 525 1922. The parent should be invited to an attendance and inclusion team around the family meeting, ideally held at the child’s school.
Stage two action is appropriate in circumstances where parents remain willing to work with schools and the local authority to improve attendance, but may not have engaged fully at the informal stage. The purpose of a stage two meeting is to enter into a formal agreement with the parent via an education parenting contract.
Although such a contract is voluntary, it should be explained clearly that such an agreement is in the parent and child’s interest with the clear aim of preventing further escalation. The template for an education parenting contract can be found in appendix 5 (PDF, 188kb). For local authority social workers and family practitioners, the contract can be completed as an embedded document from the start menu in Mosaic.
The meeting and parenting contract should:
- Review the initial attendance plan, considering in partnership with parents the reasons that the stage one plan has not had the desired impact.
- Update the analysis of patterns of absence and review the factors underpinning poor attendance (mapping), considering whether current support is sufficient and appropriate. And if not, what other action is needed to address these needs, who will take this action and what timescales may need to be changed?
- Clearly record how progress is to be monitored and contact with the parent maintained during the duration of the contract.
- Set out the action to be taken if any party does not adhere to the contract
- Inform parents of the consequences of non-compliance with the contract including statutory enforcement action, and the legal implications of this for the parent.
- Specify when and how the contract will be reviewed.
At this stage, the SEWO will be able to advise whether it would be appropriate to issue a formal written Notice of Attendance Concern (appendix 13 (PDF, 106kb)) to the parent of carer indicating that they're at risk of legal action. Although such a notice can be issued at any point in the procedure, in most cases this would take place at stage two after the parent has failed to demonstrate commitment to improving the child or young person’s attendance.
The SEWO will issue formal notices on behalf of schools and lead professionals only after stages one and two have been completed, following an attendance and inclusion consultation.
If at this stage a parent consistently declines to take reasonable steps to agree a contract or work constructively with the school and lead agency to improve attendance, the lead professional should progress to stage three immediately.
Page last updated: 16 January 2023
