AIBU to report a neighbour for keeping his DC out of school?

[Rainallnight]

Two girls who live across the road from us are still at home, after schools have gone back.

I asked one of them if something was up and she said her dad was keeping them off because ‘so many kids have tested positive for coronavirus’.

They are early secondary school age.

The dad has people popping in and out of his house all the time, so he can’t be that worried about it.

I’m really sad on their behalf. Should I report him? Or just leave it, because their school will obviously know they’re not there?

Mind your own beeswax.

Keep your nose out. I'm sure the school will notice they are not there!

No you shouldn't. Try and take up knitting or something. Or start a new box set.

The school will already know since they aren't there.

You dont know their circumstances. There might be a good reason. Leave school to manage it

I don't even know where to start with this

Just mind your own business

Care to elaborate? Why? Children’s welfare is everyone’s responsibility

Report him for not sending his children to school? Is that a thing? I don’t think it’s any of your business. School will be aware and he’ll be expected to home school them appropriately.

But surely you'll report it and they will just say they know, seeing as how they do registration every day?

That's one of the worse things to have come out of all this Covid business, it's turned some people into right nosey gits that are way too involved in what other people are doing

Safeguarding children is everyone’s responsibility; not necessarily their education.

Why do you think it's got something to do with their welfare? They might be bullied at school, have an underlying condition or just prefer to be at home, so might actually be staying at home for welfare reasons.

Why would you even consider this?

The school will be well aware they’re not there so there’s no need to tell anyone things they already know

School isn't compulsory. Education is. He might have deregistered and now be home educating them. It might be agreed with school for medical reasons. Their year groups may be isolating.

Do the girls look neglected in other ways? Do they appear to be clean and well fed in appropriate clothes for the weather? Is there a lot of obvious drinking, partying going on at the house? It's true that school absence does sometimes flag a problem at home but the school should be dealing with that. I wouldn't report unless there were some obvious other red flags.

I'm pretty sure the school realize the kids aren't there 🤣🙄

He’s not home educating them. They’re hanging around the street pretty much all day.

He’s well known locally as a petty criminal and the girls have always seemed not terribly well looked after.

@LawnFever thanks, that was really my question. School will know.

The school knows already.

Of course school will know, we do a thing called a register!

If you are worried about other safeguarding issues definitely report if not leave it 🤷🏼‍♀️

Ffs 🤦🏼‍♀️

I’m normally the first to say if your concerned then report it. But you’re not concerned that the children are being neglected or abused just that they are not in school. School will have noticed that they are not their and will have been in contact with them unless they have been registered in which case it’s possible to achieve at home in a couple of hours what takes place in school all day.

www.gov.uk/school-attendance-absence/legal-action-to-enforce-school-attendance

I think some of you need to look at this.

And I think he needs to be reported

Really? No. I am sure the school have noticed they aren't there.

The very first line of that link says “without good reason”.