Local education authorities have an obligation to provide full-time education for Traveller children of compulsory school age during the time they are staying within the local authority. Although Traveller children should attend school on the same basis as all other children, the law recognises the special position of Traveller families. The law is designed to protect Traveller parents from unreasonable prosecution for the non-attendance of their children at school. It does not mean that part-time education for Traveller pupils is legally acceptable, nor does it relieve parents of their primary duty to ensure that their children are receiving suitable education when not at school.
Updated attendance guidance – The ‘T’ Code
Although the legislation has not changed since 2011, ‘The School Attendance (Pupil Registration) (England) Regulations’ 2024 and the ‘Working Together to Improve School Attendance’ guidance use the new term ‘mobile child’ to ‘describe any child of compulsory school age who has no fixed abode’ under the eligibility criteria.
In response to feedback from Friends, Families and Travellers and other organisations, the Department for Education has confirmed that no legal or policy changes have been made about who is covered by the T code.
Providing further information around how the definition of ‘mobile child’ should be applied, the Department for Education elaborated:
‘No fixed abode’ means that someone either does not have a settled place where they can live full-time, or they have a place where they can live full-time but they spend substantial periods of time not living there’.
Essentially, according to the new guidance, a ‘mobile child’ is any pupil whose family travels as part of their trade or business, and:
- Has no permanent address.
Or
- Has a fixed place to live (including a house), but does not live there for a substantial part of the year due to travel.
If the child is absent from school while travelling with their parent for work purposes, then the T code applies. This means that parents who previously used the T code to take their child out of school to travel for work will still be able to under the new guidance.
Please see our T code One Minutes Guide for further information and support.
Our aim is to ensure that Traveller children attend school as regularly and as frequently as possible. The interest of the child needs to be balanced with a sensitive and sympathetic approach which recognises the lifestyle and cultural traditions of family life.
Addressing Gypsy, Roma, Traveller & Showmen barriers to attendance – awareness training
Do you want to understand the barriers and improve the attendance of your Gypsy, Roma, Traveller & Showmen children?
We support schools to have an increased awareness of:
- Gypsy, Roma, Traveller & Showmen history and culture
- Barriers to attendance
- Strategies to raise attendance
- Good practice in schools
Contact us for more information
Resources
- Gypsy, Roma, Traveller & Showmen Guidance Attendance – DfE
- Gypsy, Roma, Traveller Attendance advice – DCSF publication