Children Missing from Education

Section 436A, Chapter 2, Part 6 of the Education Act 1996 and the Education and Inspections Act 2006 places a duty on the local authority to make arrangements to identify children not receiving education.

The Education Welfare Service, in partnership with School Access, fulfils the statutory duty on local authorities to identify Children Missing from Education.

The term refers to all children of compulsory school age who are not on a school roll, are not being educated otherwise (privately, at home or in alternative provision). It also refers to any child whose name will be deleted from a schools admissions register (after the school and Local Authority have made reasonable enquiry to locate the pupil before the decision is made): because they have continuous unauthorised absence from school for a period of 20 school days: leave a school and future provision is unknown: fails to return from extended leave within 10 school days.