Under the 1996 Education Act (section 444) "if a child of compulsory school age who is a registered pupil at a school fails to attend regularly at the school, his parent is guilty of an offence". Using your powers of intuition and knowledge of how the world works try to work out in which of these three utterly hypothetical scenarios Kent County Council decided to issue penalty notice(s) for £100. (£50 if paid within 6 weeks.)
1/Chavetta Smiff is committed to her career as a dope dealer so she frequently works late nights and has been known to surface from her bed at past noon. Her four school age kids have to get themselves up and dressed and fed etc most days. Some days they don't bother. Chavetta rings the school and says that Sherry has period pains or Chianti has a cold, on the days when she can be arsed to, assuming she even knows the girls aren't at school that is.
2/Jeremy and Jemimah Smugly decide to take a holiday in Nice at a time when there won't be too many common people about so as they barrel down the motorway towards the airport, with Jeremy flashing the lights of their Grand Cherokee at any road user daring to drive at less than 90 mph, Jemimah rings little Timmy's school on her iphone and tells them that unfortunately he's been in bed all weekend and the doctor says its chickenpox and he can't go to school all week, terribly sorry. With their suntans refreshed Jeremy and Jemimah drop Timmy at school the following Monday with a little note to the head-teacher saying that he's feeling much better thank you.
3/John and Jane Mild decide they will book a few days in a modest cottage in the north of England during term-time because during the school holiday week they will be hosting an exchange student. After months of job insecurity John was made redundant a few weeks before, so they could really do with a change of scene and the student income will be really helpful. They do the right thing and write to the two schools their kids attend requesting permission. Neither school responds favourably but they take the holiday anyway. They ring both schools every single day saying that the pupils are unwell. (Their kids have near-perfect attendance otherwise.)
Naturally we don't condone the behaviour of the parents in any of these three entirely fictitious cases.
Clue: KCC will only make half as much money if they fine a single parent....
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