The government is facing mounting legal pressure over its decision to continue fining medically vulnerable families for poor school attendance during the pandemic.
The Good Law Project has said that education secretary Gavin Williamson could be “in breach of the law” over the issue.
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“Parents who are frightened of what [returning to school] means for their kids or vulnerable family members face fines or prosecution if they keep their kids at home until schools are made safe,” The Good Law Project said in a statement.
“And some schools and local authorities are bullying families into deregistering children.”
Covid: School attendance fines for vulnerable families ‘unlawful’
Legal advice commissioned by The Good Law Project says that “fines or prosecutions for not attending school could - depending on the facts - be unlawful” and that “vulnerable children or children who belong to vulnerable families may have a legal right to be provided with an education at home”.
The project has written to Mr Williamson seeking new guidance on protecting vulnerable pupils and families as schools return.
It said: “We will make the same request of a sample of local authorities and schools. If those letters do not draw adequate responses we will begin court proceedings to ensure compliance with the law.”
In a survey by Parentkind in late August, nine out of 10 parents of children with special educational needs and disabiities (SEND) said they should have the right to choose whether they send them to back school between August and December.
Legal advice to The Good Law Project from Fiona Scolding QC and Yaaser Vanderman refers to the prosecution of an immunosuppressed parent for withdrawing her children from school in Hampshire.
A legal note from Ms Scolding and Mr Vanderman says: “The example of Hampshire shows that an approach based upon the factual circumstances can and should be taken by every local authority.”
It adds that where local authority codes of conduct fail to take responsibilities from the Equality Act 2010 into consideration when looking at attendance fines, this could be “unlawful”.
