Children Missing from Education

Children missing from education can comprise an extremely vulnerable group of children, who often have distinct and complex needs. All services must work together to identify and re-engage children back into appropriate education provisions as quickly as possible. Children who remain disengaged from education are potentially exposed to higher degrees of risk that include developmental delay, engagement in antisocial or criminal behaviour, social disengagement or child exploitation. All places of education must have systems in place to support parents/carers, to meet the needs of children who are missing from education – see Keeping Children Safe in Education.

Parents/carers have a legal duty to ensure that children of compulsory school age are receiving a full-time education – see Education (Jersey) Law 1999 (please link to: https://www.jerseylaw.je/laws/current/l_27_1999).  Some parents/carers may elect to educate their children at home; however, this must be agreed by the Education Directorate – see Elective Home Education.

Child – A person under the age of 18 - this term is intentionally used to emphasise that a child is at risk when missing and may require protection.

Children Missing From Education - refers to any child of compulsory school age who:

• Is not on a school roll;
• Nor are they being educated otherwise, for example, privately or in an alternative provision with agreement of the Education Directorate;
• This includes children who have been out of education for a substantial period of time.

Parents/carers – The child’s biological or adoptive parents/carers, who may be relatives, friends and/or others who provide private fostering arrangements, who look after the child at their current residence. This includes carers for children who are looked after.

Places of education - Any school, college or home setting (providing full or part-time education).

School – Unless otherwise specified - all schools, including Government of Jersey Schools, Independent or Private Schools, (including those known as colleges).

In Jersey, effective safeguarding of children and young people relies on timely and appropriate information sharing. All practitioners have a legal and professional duty to share information where necessary to promote the welfare and protect the safety of children. Practitioners must be familiar with and act in accordance with the Children and Young People Law 2022, commensurate Statutory Guidance on Information Sharing, which supports multi-agency working and a child-centred approach to decision-making (underpinned by Data Protection (Jersey) Law 2018.

It is essential to establish the reason a child may be missing from education. This is not an attendance problem; it may, depending on circumstances, be a safeguarding issue. Possible reasons to consider why the child may not be registered include where children may:

• Have never been entered into the education system;
• Have stopped attending, due to illegal exclusion or withdrawal by parent/carers;
• Have a failure to complete a transition between schools;
• Be from refugee and asylum-seeking families;
• Be from highly mobile families;
• Be at risk of a forced marriage;
• Be experiencing abuse, neglect and child exploitation.

For further information on related topics such as recognising Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation, Child Exploitation, Modern Slavery and Child Trafficking, Forced Marriage, Safeguarding Unaccompanied Children, please see Jersey Practice Guidance.

When children are missing from education, for whatever reason, places of education and the Department for Children, Young People, Education and Skills (CYPES) will take steps to identify and locate them. The needs of children who move around a lot, moving into and out of Jersey, are of particular importance—see Jersey Children Moving into and out of Jersey. Locating children who are missing from education may also include working together with other multi-agency services, both on and off island, which may include UK and National authorities and jurisdictions. The pathway for practitioners working in places of education - for children missing from education is included in the School Attendance Policy for Pupils of Compulsory School Age. This pathway aims to ensure all children who are Missing From Education are identified quickly and receive an equitable and effective response.

Any agency may identify a child who is missing from education. However, agencies such as Customs and Immigration Services, Employment, Social Security, Housing and Health are particularly likely to identify these children, through their day-to-day service provision to families in Jersey. Children who are missing from education may be at risk of significant harm, and they may also have unaddressed health and developmental needs. Any practitioner who identifies a child of compulsory school age who may not be being brought to, attending, or registered at a place of education should consider the child to have potential safeguarding needs. In these circumstances, practitioners and agencies must consider the needs of the child and make a referral: 

• To the police by calling 999 where there is a risk of immediate significant harm;
• To the Children and Families Hub for support - following the Jersey Child Protection Procedures and Children and Young People Safeguarding Referrals Procedure;
• The Children and Families HUB will triage the case and make a referral to the Education Welfare Team Manager or Designated Safeguarding Officer for Education.

There may be cases where parents/carers fail to register their child at an appropriate place of education when they arrive in or leave Jersey, and as a result, the child may be lost from the school roll. There may be cases where children have left the island and parents have not notified school; in these  cases the child must remain on the school’s register and the child should be referred to the Education Welfare Team (EWT) Manager for CYPES – see Education Welfare Team. The EWT Manager and the Designated Safeguarding Officer for Education, should then work together, seek the support of the Children and Families HUB and the Police Protection Unit if required; and all attempts should be made to trace the child – see School Attendance Policy for Pupils of Compulsory School Age 2025.

Education Welfare Leaflet for Parents

Children who Go Missing (Jersey Youth Services)