'Get a grip' school absence ads cause anger

A mother has hit out at a hard-hitting advertising campaign by her local authority aimed at encouraging parents not to let their children miss school.

East Sussex County Council launched the drive at the start of term in a bid to warn parents they will be fined if their children take unauthorised absences from school.

The local authority brought 181 prosecutions in the academic year 2016 - 2017, under which parents were fined a total of more than £27,000, and ordered to pay more than £31,000 in costs. The number of prosecutions was almost three times higher than in the previous academic year.

The council says it wants to avoid further prosecutions and to protect the future prospects of the area's young people. On the launch of the campaign earlier this month it set out its reasoning:

In its campaign literature the local authority said that 'children and young people who are regularly absent are also more likely to miss out on forming the strong friendship bonds that those who attend every day enjoy.'

It also advised parents to book doctor or dentist appointments outside of school hours - and to ensure that their child has a regular bedtime routine without electronic devices, so that they are not tired for school on the following day.

However, the campaign featuring slogans such as 'Don't Be a Mug' and 'Get a Grip' has left one mother angry. Lara Stutchbury has called the advertisements 'short-sighted and patronising' - she says that some parents, like her, have no choice but for their children to miss classes or school for hospital appointments, or other health or educational needs. She wants the ads to be scrapped.

In response to the complaint the council has said it had not intended to offend anyone.