Education Welfare Service

The Education Welfare Service is part of Stockport Family and is responsible for the following areas of work:

• Advice and guidance on school attendance
• Enforcement action relating to irregular school attendance and unauthorised leave of absence from school
• Advice and guidance on exclusion from school
• Arranging education for permanently excluded pupils
• Carrying out the local authority’s duties in relation to Children Missing Education (CME)
• Advice and guidance on Elective Home Education
• Provision of home tuition for children who are unable to attend school due to health needs
• Child employment and entertainment licensing

Each school has a named Education Welfare Officer (EWO) that they can contact for any advice and support relating to school attendance.

Schools can request the involvement of the Education Welfare Service in cases where parents have failed to ensure that their child (if compulsory school age) attends school regularly (Section 444(1) and (1)(a) Education Act 1996). This may result in parents being issued with an Education Penalty Notice or prosecution.