Education - EWS - Education Welfare Service

The Education Welfare Service supports schools, children and young people, and their families to promote good attendance and access to education. 

While the service has a legal role in enforcing attendance, the main focus is on working with families and schools to resolve concerns early and avoid the need for legal action where possible. 

However, this is usually a lst resort after other support options have been explored.

How the service supports

Education Welfare Officers (EWOs) work closely with schools and families to undersand the reasons behind poor attendance and find practical solutions. They can:

• Encourage parents and carers to engage with schools and discuss concerns
• Offer advice and guidance on education-related issues
• Explain legal responsibilities around school attendance
• Help strengthen communication between home and school
• Support schools to better understand individual circumstances

Understanding attendance challenges

Irregular school attendance can often be linked to a range of personal or family challenges. EWOs work to: 

• Identify pupils with ongoing attendance concerns
• Understand the underlying causes of absence
• Assess wider factors affecting attendance 
• Work with schools, families, and other professionals to plan appropriate support

Working with schools and families

The service supports schools by:

• Analysing and monitoring attendance data
• Identifying patterns of absence, including persistent absence  
• Supporting the development of action plans
• Reviewing the impact of strategies put in place

EWOs then work with families and schools to implement support plans aimed at improving attendance and removing barriers. 

Legal responsibilities

Where necessary, the Education Welfare Service may take legal action on behalf of the local authority if attendance does not improve despite support. 

However, this is usually a last resort after other support options have been explored.

Wider responsibilities

The Education Welfare Service also has responsibilities for:

• Children missing from education (CME)
• Elective home education (EHE)
• Child employment 
• Entertainment licensing

Some aspects of the service may vary for academies, as not all statutory responsibilities apply in the same way. 

General enquiries email: ews@wakefield.gov.uk 

Children Missing Education enquiries email: educationcme@wakefield.gov.uk