Spot the difference!
Below are the sections of the guidance relating to how schools should record the absences of children of economically nomadic families. The left-hand column shows the guidance in force until the 19th August 2024, the right-hand one the guidance applying after that date.
Guidance for maintained schools,
academies, independent schools, and
local authorities
Published: May 2022
Applies from: September 2022
Code T: Traveller absence
- A number of different groups are covered by the generic term traveller – Roma, English and Welsh Gypsies, Irish and Scottish Travellers, Showmen (fairground people) and Circus people, Bargees (occupational boat dwellers) and New Travellers.
- This code should not be used for general absences by those groups. It must only be used when the pupil’s parent(s) is travelling for occupational purposes and the school has granted a leave of absence following a request from the parent. This code should not be used to record any other types of absence by these groups.
- Pupils from these groups whose parent(s) do not travel for occupational purposes are expected to attend school as normal. They are subject to the same rules as other pupils in terms of the requirements to attend school regularly once registered at a school.
- Where a pupil has no fixed abode because their parent(s) is engaged in a business or trade that requires them to travel, there is an expectation that the pupil attends at least 200 sessions per year. The pupil must attend school as regularly as the business permits and therefore, if the business or trade permits the pupil to attend for more than 200 sessions per year, they should do so.
- To help ensure continuity of education for pupils, when their parent(s) is travelling for occupational purposes, it is expected that the pupil should attend school elsewhere when their parent(s) is travelling and be dual registered at that school and their main school.
Statutory guidance for maintained
schools, academies, independent
schools and local authorities
Published: 29 February 2024
Applies from: 19 August 2024
Code T: Parent travelling for occupational purposes
- The pupil is a mobile child and their parent(s) is travelling in the course of their trade or business and the pupil is travelling with them. A mobile child is a child of compulsory school age who has no fixed abode and whose parent(s) is engaged in a trade or business of such a nature as to require them to travel from place to place.
- Schools should not unnecessarily ask for proof that the parent is travelling for occupational purposes, this should only happen when there are genuine and reasonable doubt about the authenticity of the reason for absence given. If there is doubt over the reason given, the school may ask for proof that the family are required to travel for occupational purposes during the period of absence.
- To help ensure continuity of education for pupils, when their parent(s) is travelling for occupational purposes in England, it is expected that the pupil should attend a school where their parent(s) is travelling and be dual registered at that school and their main school.
- This code is classified for statistical purposes as authorised absence.
- Whilst for statistical purposes this is counted as authorised absence, if a pupil’s attendance was to fall below an acceptable level consideration may be given to attendance enforcement.
The law has not changed and ACERT is unclear what the purpose of the change is. This change has not been discussed at the Gypsy, Roma and Traveller Stakeholder group.
In 2011 the Coalition Government proposed the repeal of section 444 of the Education Act 1996 which :
protects travelling parents from being found guilty of school
attendance offence if their child is absent from school, in certain
circumstances.
Improving educational outcomes for children of travelling families
ACERT along with many other organisations responded to the consultation arguing that this change would increase the difficulties faced by nomadic families and would not improve attendance. The Government did not go ahead with the repeal so parents can still argue that they are not guilty of an offence provided that they are of no fixed abode when travelling and:
(a) parents are engaged in a trade or business of such a nature as to
require them to travel from place to place, and
(b) the child has attended at a school as a registered pupil as regularly as the nature of that trade or business permits, and
(c) if the child has attained the age of six, that he or she has made at
least 200 attendances during the period of 12 months ending with the date on which the proceedings were instituted.
Improving educational outcomes for children of travelling families
Friends and Families of Travellers received this clarification from the DoE.
“No fixed abode’ means that someone either does not have a settled place where they can live full-time, or they have a place where they can live full-time but they spend substantial periods of time not living there. So a mobile child could be a child whose family travels all year round as part of their trade or business and has no permanent address at all, but it also includes a child who does have a fixed place to live (like a house) but does not live there for a substantial part of the year, if their parent is engaged in a trade or business that requires them to travel from place to place. If the child is absent from school while travelling with that parent, then code T applies.”
FFT has drafted a template letter which parents can send to schools.
ACERT doesn’t know if this change in the guidance will make any significant difference to the experiences of families but we would like to hear from those who travel if they are facing new problems as a result.
