The number of parents threatened with legal action because of their children’s truancy rose from 9,200 to 11,600 between July and December 2005, new figures from the Department for Education and Skills show.
But the number of cases which went to court fell from 1,900 to 1,500 in the same period. Officials argue that the trend shows ministers’ approach of encouraging local authorities to use their powers to threaten parents of serial truants is working.
