NO
Philip Parkin, general secretary, education union Voice
I am very uncomfortable about cutting child benefit, which is there to help parents pay for their children’s upkeep. Cutting the benefit punishes the children rather than the parents.
Many parents of persistent truants are on low incomes, so reducing that income would only serve to destabilise further already dysfunctional families.
I am not convinced that fines work in changing the behaviour of parents. I would rather see some form of compulsory parenting classes to address the behaviour of parents and pupils, along the lines of speed awareness courses offered to some motorists instead of a fine or penalty points.
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