An anti-truancy operation was conducted earlier this month, between Tuesday 7 – Thursday 9 March, as a joint venture between police in West Kent and Kent County Council Attendance and Behaviour Service.  The operation was part of the national initiative to reduce unauthorised absence from school.

Working alongside police officers in Tonbridge, Tunbridge Wells and Cranbrook, Sevenoaks and Edenbridge, education welfare officers stopped young people they saw in public places to find out why they were not in school.  If they did not have a legitimate reason for being absent some of the pupils stopped were returned to school.  Others will be followed-up by the education welfare officers in the coming weeks, including two young people from East Sussex one of whom was a missing person.

The results for the operation were as follows:

Tonbridge, Thursday March 9 
A total of 25 young people stopped
2 were returned to school

Tunbridge Wells and Cranbrook, Tuesday March 7
A total of 31 young people stopped
6 were returned to school
2 were returned to their home address

Sevenoaks and Edenbridge, Wednesday March 8  
A total of 3 young people stopped
(combination of poor weather and officers being called away resulted in only a very short time spent in this area)

PC Alan Hibbins, Youth Crime Reduction Officer and operation co-ordinator said: “We carry out similar truancy sweeps two or three times a year. In West Kent there isn’t a big problem but absence from school cannot be good for the young person as it is depriving them of the education services to which they are entitled.”

Eleanor Morgan, Area Co-ordination Manager, Attendance and Behaviour Service said: “On this occasion one of the issues we identified was young people truanting without parents' knowledge.  Their vulnerability was a cause for concern.”