IT goes without saying just how important it is that children go to their school.

This is a fact recognised in law as parents or guardians who do not send their children to school can be prosecuted under the Education Act of 1996.

Over the past month, three parents or guardians from Reading have been the subject of court hearings because they have broken this very law.

We have compiled a list of the schools affected by parents failing to send their children to class, choosing to anonymise the parent or the pupil in order to avoid the identification of the child.

Here are the schools affected:

St Michael’s Primary School

A parent was fined £500 in April 2022 for failing to send their child to school between September 2021 and January 2022.

Ranikhet Academy

A parent was fined £500 in April 2022 for failing to send their child to school between September 2021 and December 2021.

University Technical College Reading

A parent was fined £333 in April 2022 for failing to send their child to school between September 2021 and November 2021.