Huge increase in parents being prosecuted for child truancy in Cambridgeshire amid government crackdown

More than three times as many parents in Cambridgeshire are being prosecuted for truancy compared to five years ago, amid a government crackdown on unauthorised school absences.

Councils covered by Cambridgeshire police took 297 parents to court in 2017, figures released under the Freedom of Information Act show.

This was a huge increase from 2013, when there were just 87 prosecutions. Of those charged in 2017, 255, or 86 per cent, were found guilty. Courts issued fines in 223 cases.