Overall 0.7 per cent of all half-day sessions were skipped last year, the same as in 1997, meaning that the Government’s target of cutting truancy by a third by this year has been comprehensively missed. But truancy did fall in areas supported by the Excellence in Cities scheme.

Now a new, fast-track process will allow parents just one term to make sure their child attends school or face prosecution that could lead to fines of up to pound;2,500 or jail.

The new procedure will be piloted in six local education authorities across England from next month.

Stephen Twigg, education minister, also announced more nationwide truancy sweeps in the peak Christmas shopping period.

In the last sweeps, in May, thousands of truants were caught with a parent.

But the Prime Minister has scrapped plans to withdraw child benefit from the parents of truants. Chancellor Gordon Brown and Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott are understood to have opposed the plan, believing it would undermine Labour’s commitment to end child poverty.

Although truancy stayed the same last year, overall absence did fall slightly because of a drop in authorised absence.

Fast-track prosecution of parents was welcomed with “delight” by the Secondary Heads Association. The plans were also given a cautious welcome by the National Union of Teachers, although general secretary Doug McAvoy stressed truancy sweeps “must apply equally to Harrods as well as to Woolworths”.