Truants' Parents Face Docking Of Benefits

[Blasphemous]

But do we want feral, undisciplined, disruptive kids in school ruining things for the decent kids?

Why some white collar, middle class, pen pushing government official thinks that dragging the feral sprogs of society into school is going to put an end to crimes like the riots is beyond me. Why should teachers (and the other kids), have to put up with a kid whose main focus is to cause as much disruption as possible in the hope of being sent home? It's not a teachers job to discipline kids. It's a parents job. Teachers might like to think they instil discipline but it's GOT TO BE driven in from the parents. If it's not, no teacher is going to have ANY effect on that kid.

Most kids don't WANT to go to school. I'll concede that. They'd like to be on a permanent holiday. I certainly didn't WANT to be at school when I was a kid. But there's a difference between that and what these feral lot are. They've had no discipline from day one. I have no idea what anyone thinks is going to be solved by dragging them into school. It's got to come from the parents. So I suggest, compulsory education for the parents. Get them to attend sessions, get them to sit exams, if they don't attend, don't achieve, they don't get paid. It might teach them something, it'll certainly force them to conform in order to get benefits.

This Charlie Taylor comes from 'some of London's toughest schools' and was commissioned by Education Secretary Michael Gove to look at the issue of school attendance in the wake of the summer riots last year. So this bloke comes from the 'toughest schools' in London and yet we still had the riots! How then will getting these kids into school (any school, let alone the 'toughest'), make any difference to disorder such as riots? The 'tough' schools were in place when the riots were happening! Oh I know, the ones who were at the riots were the ones who weren't in the 'tough' schools eh? Yeah!

Get the parents into 'tough schools', it's amazing how much you can achieve when you're buying the round!

Truants' Parents Face Docking Of Benefits

Parents who let their children play truant from school could have their child benefit payments docked.

The Government's adviser on behaviour has said the current system of penalty notices does not work because around half of them went unpaid.

Under Charlie Taylor's new plans, the maximum fine will go up from £50 to £60, doubling to £120 pounds if not paid within 28 days.

And if people fail to pay, Mr Taylor said the money should be taken automatically from their child benefit.

Mr Taylor, who has worked in some of London's toughest schools, was commissioned by Education Secretary Michael Gove to look at the issue of school attendance in the wake of the summer riots last year.

Announcing his findings today, he will say: "We know that some parents simply allow their children to miss lessons and then refuse to pay the fine.

"It means the penalty has no effect, and children continue to lose vital days of education they can never recover.

"Recouping the fines through child benefit, along with other changes to the overall system, will strengthen and simplify the system."

Issuing fines to parents is one of the last resorts for schools to deal with absence problems.

If a head teacher decides to impose a fine, the parent has 28 days to pay a fine of £50 - if they fail, then it is doubled.

After 42 days, if the parent has not paid, then the school or local authority has to withdraw the penalty notice, with the only further option being for local authorities to prosecute parents for the offence.

More than 32,600 penalty notices for school absence were issued to parents last year, and more than 127,000 have been issued since introduction in 2004.

However, around half went unpaid or were withdrawn.

Mr Taylor is also expected to recommend that the Government should toughen up rules around term-time holidays.

The latest figures show that these remain a major reason for absence and in 2010/11 increased to 9.5% of overall absence, from 9.3% the previous year.

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/truants-parents-face-docking-benefits-032837234.html

 

[hereisthetruth]

When I was young truant officers roamed the streets and known hangouts. I was off school sick once for a week and answered the door in my pyjamas to find a welfare officer checking I was home and ill...

Nowadays they don't monitor things that closely.

I was playing snooker once in a snooker hall with a friend I was 16 and the place had quite a feww teens in there.
Next thing in comes the headmaster of a local school with a police officer and rounded up every single teen in the place all who should apparently have been at school that day.

As for docking benefits - I can't see that working. If the fine was paid to the school in the first instance then it came via the benefits sytem anyway.

It just won't work and then what?

The responsibility should be placed solely on the child. Its wrong to assume everyone playing truant is doing so because their parents allow it.

 

[Blasphemous]

The responsibility should be placed solely on the child. Its wrong to assume everyone playing truant is doing so because their parents allow it.

It's your child, it's your responsibility.

 

[^woody^]

What makes you think that it is just benefit claimants who's kids play truant

Will employed people have an earnings cost order made against them?

 

[Blasphemous]

What makes you think that it is just benefit claimants who's kids play truant

Will employed people have an earnings cost order made against them?

Why not?

 

[EddieM]

The responsibility should be placed solely on the child. Its wrong to assume everyone playing truant is doing so because their parents allow it.

It's your child, it's your responsibility.

I'm not disagreeing with a lot of what you say, but how do you make your child behave / go to school ?

 

[^woody^]

The whole idea of schooling is to teach and inspire. Modern schooling methods and curriculum are failing at this, and it is not the children's fault.

Schools are chasing targets and exam results rather than ensuring children are well educated, and this means that a child is either not put forward for a course or exam because they "might" fail - and so affect the schools statistics. A better way (for the child and society) would be to ensure that the child is given the means, encouragement and inspiration to achieve.

A society must work together and everyone play a part. Granted, this is not achievable, and there will be a percentage who wont work and will be a burden on society. But a caring society must allow for that too.

To castigate children and adults will lead to more crime and more burden on society. If benefits, or any only source of income is cut, then a person will resort to getting the money for food and basic needs somehow - and that will be via crime

The only way to correct all this is via education, and that means finding novel ways of helping those who, for what ever reason play truant. And part of that education will be how to behave

Punishment should always be as a very last resort.

 

[Blasphemous]

The responsibility should be placed solely on the child. Its wrong to assume everyone playing truant is doing so because their parents allow it.

It's your child, it's your responsibility.

I'm not disagreeing with a lot of what you say, but how do you make your child behave / go to school ?

I'm not saying it's going to be an easy road Eddie. You start off on the right foot and it'll be easier, start off allowing your kids to be feral and you're going to have an up hill struggle. That's THEIR problem, they created the problem. I'll conceded, kids will do what they're told to do if they respect their parents, if they don't, no amount of fines, courses etc etc is going to solve that. In my opinion those kids need to be in these so called 'tough schools', schools that only those kids go to. Where good, decent kids aren't subject to their torrent of abuse. I'm sick and tired of hearing the same old story about how we have to do as much as we can to 'help' these kids. Bloody Jamie Oliver had 'Jamie's Dream School', a program where badly behaved kids were given lessons by the likes of Professor Robert Winston, Andrew Motion, Daley Thompson, Dame Ellen MacArthur, Rankin, Rolf Harris, the list goes on. It's a bleeding joke! There are kids who would be over the moon to have lessons for the likes of these people. Decent, law abiding, honest, hard working, caring, sensible kids and they see these feral kids being rewarded for their lack of discipline, their 'couldn't give a ****' attitude, by being granted a place being taught by these people! It's just not right! If anyone should be rewarded with a place in the audience of these people it's the good kids not the feral ones! Let them see what they're missing. But then we're back to... "Yeah, I'm on the edge of society, no body respects me, that's why I don't respect......" blah blah blah. I'm sick of hearing it. I'm sick of hearing the 'Oh what can we do next to help Kylie/Kyle et al!

 

[hereisthetruth]

We need something they can aim for - employment for low skilled non achievers.

We don't have the employment that kept people out of trouble.
I have employed hundreds of people over the years. I had 40 employees at one time all poorly educated school leavers who were employed for manual work. I would take one of those hard working loyal ex employees against any ten GPs I managed in another job. The Doctors were lazy and shirked responsibility not to mention greedy. The manual workers I had were tireless and uncomplaining.

 

[Blasphemous]

We need something they can aim for - employment for low skilled non achievers.

We don't have the employment that kept people out of trouble.
I have employed hundreds of people over the years. I had 40 employees at one time all poorly educated school leavers who were employed for manual work. I would take one of those hard working loyal ex employees against any ten GPs I managed in another job. The Doctors were lazy and shirked responsibility not to mention greedy. The manual workers I had were tireless and uncomplaining.

There will be plenty of kids who go to school but don't achieve particularly good grades. I'm not talking about grades, I'm talking about well behaved people.

As for something they can aim for in terms of employment, that's a LONG way off. The country is on it's knees employment wise. But that applies to everyone in every job, in every skill set.

 

[EddieM]

Well, I'd agree that we need, as a country, to offer a range of jobs that are available to non academic and academic children alike, I think the word under achievers is a bit much, as non academic people often shine in different areas. A lot entrepreneurs are academic drop outs, and some academically bright people are not well suited to the workplace.

What we currently have is a large bias towards service sector jobs, that often don't really appeal to young men.

 

[Micilin]

For well off miscreants, should we dock them the same % of their income as we would someone on benefit ?

 

[Nige F]

["]

We need something they can aim for - employment for low skilled non achievers.

. I would take one of those hard working loyal ex employees against any ten GPs I managed in another job. The Doctors were lazy and shirked responsibility not to mention greedy. The manual workers I had were tireless and uncomplaining.

Here we have the Middle Class` burden - attitude , and their gods Sugar and Monetarism - otherwise known as S+M . Like I`ve said before we all wannabe middle class - Not me I`m redder than Red Ken`s red bits

 

[hereisthetruth]

There is no incentive left for the working class hence they give up at school , not even a grammar school system to give them hope of a good education if they tried.

Benefits vs call centre work?



Even I would go benefits. I have the experience of a 300 telephone calls a day to make 3 appointments if you are lucky. Not in my current role I might add but in another long ago life.

 

[Blasphemous]

For well off miscreants, should we dock them the same % of their income as we would someone on benefit ?

What makes you think that it is just benefit claimants who's kids play truant

Will employed people have an earnings cost order made against them?

Why not?