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@ISIDEWITHQuestionsEducationStarted 7yrs agoActive 3hrs ago

Should the government decriminalize school truancy?

Truancy is intentional, unjustified, unauthorized, or illegal absence from compulsory education. Its absence is caused by students of their own free will and does not apply to excused absences. In England and Wales truancy is a criminal offence. Parents of students who are persistently truant may be imprisoned for up to 3 months.

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Answer Overview

Response rates from 78.5k UK voters.

42%
Yes
58%
No

Historical Support

Trend of support over time for each answer from 78.5k UK voters.

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Historical Importance

Trend of how important this issue is for 78.5k UK voters.

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Other Popular Answers

Unique answers from UK voters whose views went beyond the provided options.

 @92VQH2Qanswered…4yrs4Y

Yes, however if there is a legitimate reason; ie Physical/Mental illnesses, then no action should be taken by the government.

 @9M63D32answered…2yrs2Y

Yes, because there are many reasons that students cannot attend school and we should be helping them rather than punishing them.

 @9L2X73Lanswered…2yrs2Y

There are various reasons as to why children truant from school; whether it is bullying, health issues, struggling with schoolwork, more help and resources should be provided to look into why children truant.

 @BDZYGXLanswered…2wks2W

No, but cases where truancy has become a real issue should trigger evidence gathering for action plans to meet the causes of truancy.

 @BDYRW7C answered…2wks2W

Yes. Parents should not be fined.

 @BDXFYCGanswered…3wks3W

If its a recurring issue and the child is getting no education and home or at school then no its practically abuse

 @BDVC673answered…3wks3W

The reasons in which the child is absent should be investigated and dealt with

 @BDSXJ4Ganswered…4wks4W

Yes, but only up to 5 days per year

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 @ISIDEWITHDiscuss this answer...…6yrs6Y

Should critical race theory be taught in K-12 education?

No

▲  19.8k6 replies4 agree1 disagree

About This Data

Based on 78.5k responses to this question.

These results come from iSideWith's ongoing political issues survey. We collect over a million responses per day, filter out duplicate and multiple submissions, and break the results down by political party, ideology, age, state, and census demographics (income, race, education, household).

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Cite This Poll

iSideWith. (2026). “Should the government decriminalize school truancy?” — Public Opinion Poll Results. Retrieved June 25, 2026, from https://uk.isidewith.com/polls/3881776833

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