IF a child skips half a day's school here and there, where's the harm?

It is that lax attitude, too prevalent among parents, which has led to a truancy epidemic in Britain.

Pupils absent each day could fill 816 primary schools and 252 secondaries. That is a lot of education missed.

The Government's twin-pronged solution is familiar: set "tough" targets and throw money at the problem. Nearly £900 million, all told, according to today's National Audit Office report. Yet the number of children playing truant has not changed.

We are fortunate that this area has a relatively low truancy rate. North Yorkshire's education authority deserves particular praise in that respect. York schools have more unauthorised absences. One in every five secondary school pupils plays truant, according to Whitehall.

No one can accuse the authorities of ignoring the issue. City police and social services pioneered Truancy Watch, a scheme which left Government minister Lord Falconer "incredibly impressed".

Last year the city council announced plans to introduce fixed penalty notices to parents whose children played truant.

But these schemes do not address the root of the problem: why so many pupils find school irrelevant. The best way to cut truancy rates is to make school worthwhile for all pupils.

The Government should introduce more practical, vocational lessons for less academic teenagers, as advocated by both former chief inspector of schools Sir Mike Tomlinson and the Conservative Party.

Updated: 11:44 Friday, February 04, 2005