Children being late to school...

[momof2boy]

Im looking for some advice, Ive been a single mom for 9 years 5 with only 1 child and the last 4 with 2, My oldest son has been late to school 40 times this year, terrible i know, Ive had 5 surgeries this year, yeah not been a good year health wise for me, and we also live 30 min from the school, while i was in the hospital during the surgeries i only had my dad who could get my son and take him to school, and my dad didnt get off work til 730 am and my son had to be there at 8 so for him to drive 24 miles to my house and another 26 to the school in 30 min was impossible... idk what to do... i received a letter from the district court saying I could face criminal charges if this contines... Ive never even been arrested before n the thought of someone taking my kids kills me, idk what to do...

If you dc has been placed at a primary school 30 mins away, surely your local authority MUST provide transport for him??

the only thing he could do was ride the bus an hour away to another school, we tried that the 1st year we were here n he hated the school and the long bus ride and then he wasnt home til after 5 it was horrible... he barely had time to eat supper n do his homework then it was bed since he had to get up so early for school... we literally live in the middle of no where....

If your dc's school is 26 miles away how on earth could it ever only be a 30 min drive .

Could you move your dcs to a local school (assuming this is not in fact your local school)? If it is your local school then the LEA has to provide transport, as sybil has said.

they had a school in the town that we live in, but since there is only 180 people here, they had to close it cuz there wasnt enough kids in town...

Couldn't you move closer to the school or arrange for him to have a lift with a schoolfriend on the days you aren't able to take him?

You shouldn't get a letter threatening court out of the blue. What was his attendance like before this year? What discussions have you had with the school? With EWO?

moving requires money and energy which i lack, due to health reasons.... and i really dont know anyone he goes to school with, or their moms, i wanna move into the town his school is in, but i just dont have the money right now, by the time school starts next year we will be moved, theres only 3 weeks left of school here...

last year his attendance was fine... he was late maybe 3 or 4 times due to snow, this is the only year we have had an attendance problem, n he goes everyday, he was just late a lot....

If there is only three weeks of school left in this academic year I doubt the LEA would take action. You could pre-empt it by writing and explaining your situation and how you propose to resolve it. I would have thought they would be sympathetic to the situation as you've described it.

I talked to the school today and they told me to bring in all the dr papers and hospital papers and they will send them to the district attorney...

Im not very open with my personal life, the principal knew i was sick, only because of what my son had told him, but i let him know pretty much the whole thing and thats when he told me to bring in all the papers and they will send them to the district attorney...

Sorry if I've missed it, but what area are you in??

Unfortunately you need to disclose some personal stuff to help get yourself out of a potential mess. It sounds as if the principal is sympathetic and it won't be in the DA's interest to prosecute if the principal is supportive of your position. I hope your health and circumstances improve soon.

I called the school and let them know he was gonna be late as i wasnt gonna be bringing him to school and explained that my dad didnt get off til 730... but i didnt tell them why...

cornfeild area

You could just have said you were unwell and not able to drive, hence your dad taking your son to school when he got home from work. Doesn't disclose too much personal stuff but does disclose enough to show that it isn't a case of cba on your part.

i told them i wasnt gonna be in town, cause all of my surgeries i have to go 2 hrs from where i live to have them done...

Ok I was an EWO for over 10 years and there's no way you will be arrested/kids removed - especially if you've never been prosecuted for this before.

The most that can happen on a first offence is a community order or a fine of up to £1000 - but even this is unlikely in England Wales and Scotland, you're more likely to get a parenting contract or an absolute discharge, especially given your health issues.

HTH
XX

Taxi?

Their dad/ grandparents?

I think the OP may be in the US - am I right?

Yeah think I just picked up that this may be a post from USA - sorry in that case, my experience will be of no use whatsoever, except to say cooperate with the authorities, it'll go in your favour.