COMMENT : Parents are responsible for children (From Worcester News)

COMMENT : Parents are responsible for children

8:50am Monday 12th November 2007 in News

NEWS that truancy levels have dropped following the recent jailing of a Worcester woman whose 12-year-old son was not attending school is to be welcomed.

Parental responsibility is the key factor in ensuring that children are in school when they should be and not roaming the streets causing trouble.

Too many parents - particularly of secondary school-age children - view attendance at school as optional. We have all heard of children who are allowed to stay at home because it is their birthday, or to go shopping, or some other spurious reason.

It is a short step from the odd day off for no valid reason to lengthy absences from the classroom.

The reality is - and cases like that of Tanya Brookes serve to emphasise the point - that school attendance is compulsory. Non-attendance is against the law and the buck stops with parents.

Bad parenting is the root cause of many of this country's social problems. The feckless and the irresponsible instil a lack of values in their young.

They represent a tiny minority of parents. Yet their children create the vast majority of the problems we expect the police and other authorities to solve.

If the jailing of one mother provides others with a short, sharp shock then so be it.

The evidence appears to be that parents whose children play truant have taken on board the harsh lesson learnt by Ms Brookes. The result is their offspring are now attending school.

Who said prison doesn't work?