Mother warned she could be jailed for Christmas unless son returns to school
The Wicklow PeopleA Wicklow mother, who was jailed for one month over her 15-year-old son’s persistent school refusal, has been told she will spend Christmas in prison unless the teenager returns to full-time education.
The woman appeared before Wicklow Circuit Criminal Court on a District Court appeal.
The woman was sentenced to one months’ imprisonment by Judge David Kennedy in the District Court in May 2025, after pleading guilty to one count of truancy, relating to her 15-year-old son’s failure to attend school.
Under the Education (Welfare) Act 2000, parents are legally required to ensure their child attends school, with Tusla empowered to intervene when attendance falls below acceptable levels. The law allows the agency to issue formal warnings and, in more serious cases, to bring parents before the District Court for failing to ensure regular school attendance.
The court was told this was the eighth hearing in relation to the matter.
State solicitor Brian Robinson told the court that the defendant’s son had not transferred to secondary school. The court heard that the mother had been summoned, but the matter was adjourned on several occasions to allow her to engage with Tusla and assist in getting the youth into full-time education.
A Tusla welfare and education officer told the court that the organisation had recommended multiple recognised learning centres and alternative pathways, but had received no engagement from either the mother or the youth. The officer said Tusla was not pushing for the mother to be jailed.
The court was told that the youth’s primary school attendance had been only around 50 to 60 pc.
Counsel for the accused, Eoghan Gallagher BL, told the court that significant issues were at play, including the question of what a parent can do if a child refuses to attend school. The teenager has been diagnosed with ADHD.
Counsel outlined context for the family situation, noting that the youth’s father has been barred from the family home and the mother is well known to the District Court.
Judge Patrick Quinn remarked: “What chance does a child have in life if they cannot read or write?”
The court heard that the youth has attended a school only sporadically, and the Tusla officer said it would now be very difficult for him to make meaningful progress this late in the academic year.
Judge Quinn directed that the teenager be brought into the witness box. He told him that he cannot continue staying out of school, warning that if he does, his mother will go to prison and miss Christmas.
An agreement was reached that the teenager will return to school until March, allowing time for his mother to apply for a place in Youthreach, which requires an interview.
Judge Quinn adjourned the matter until March 24, 2026, to allow steps to be taken to secure alternative education. If this does not happen, the mother will serve the sentence previously imposed by the District Court.