A mother has been jailed for 28 days after a court heard her daughter had missed 125 days of school out of the last 156 days she could have attended. On April 7, five certificates were presented which explained 16 days of absences, but nothing was produced as to the other 109 days. Judge McNulty convicted the woman in her absence and heard that she is already appealing a previous seven-day jail sentence for a similar offence. He said: "sadly and with great regret" he was sentencing her to 28 days in prison. Tusla only brings prosecutions against parents or guardians for school absenteeism after it has issued warnings, including the formal School Attendance Notices.

Source: Irish Examiner May 20, 2019 17:48 UTC