3 May 2019 weekly update

Dear Colleagues

Single Justice Procedure (SJP) - Background

The Courts are rolling out a process known as SJP which is due to “go live” in Kent for non-school attendance offences in July 2019.

The aim of the new process is to free up time in the already overcrowded Court listings, and to enable straightforward cases to be heard more quickly. For Kent County Council this means most of the unpaid Penalty Notices issued for unauthorised holiday (Code G on the registration certificate) will proceed to Court using the new SJP. The process will require that all evidence is submitted to the Court at the same time as it is sent to the defendant.

What does it mean for schools?

For schools and their staff this means that any request submitted by a school for a Penalty Notice for unauthorised holiday must include all the required evidence. Any request that does not have all the evidence as requested on the Digital Front Door form (pathway 10) will not proceed to Court after July 2019. Some minor changes will be made to the Digital Front Door form to assist schools in completing the form. Unfortunately, due to the new time constraints imposed in the new SJP process, there will no longer be any opportunity to request missing information from schools.

The Code of Conduct for Education Penalty Notices, Guidance Notes and Summary tips for Education Providers requesting Penalty Notices are available to refer to on the Penalty Notice page. All these documents have been written to assist schools in improving attendance by making the best use of Penalty Notices.

Implications for Local Authorities

For Kent County Council it should mean that any cases where a Penalty Notice remains unpaid will be listed and heard by a Magistrate and Legal Adviser in private without the prosecutor or defendant present.

Effect on parents being prosecuted

Information sent to parents in the SJP pack will explain to parents that those parents who wish to plead Not Guilty or want a hearing will need to request a hearing, by completing the court forms and returning them within a strict time limit. If a hearing is requested the case will be heard in the normal way with both the prosecutor and defendant present in a public Court room in front of Magistrates and a Legal Adviser.

For further information please see the Government website

Matt Dunkley CBE
Corporate Director
Children, Young People and Education