A BLACKPOOL dad of three has become the first in Britain to be jailed for letting one of his children skip school.

Painter and decorator James Allen, 34, of Gorton Street, Blackpool pleaded guilty to an offence of failing to ensure the regular attendance of school of his 14-year-old son, James, from last September to January this year.

Blackpool Magistrates were told on Thursday that teenager James had attended school on just 26 out of a possible 154 occasions.

Graham Smith, prosecuting for the education authority, said James was a pupil at Collegiate High School, Blackpool.

The offence related to James' attendance at school during a four month period between September 3 last year and January 10 this year.

"James' overall attendance rate during this time was just 16 per cent," Mr Smith told the court.

Allen had two previous convictions relating to James, and another of his children, 11-year-old Stephen, for their attendance from April 8 to June 14 last year, it also emerged.

During those two months, James' attendance at Collegiate High School was just 39 per cent. Stephen, who was a pupil at Thames Primary School, Blackpool, had an attendance rate of 75 per cent.

"For these previous offences Allen was sentenced to a 12 months Parenting Order with the proviso he must ensure the boys go to school," Mr Smith added. Defending, Peter Lawson told the court that Allen and his 31-year-old partner Louise had three sons, the youngest being five-year-old Jake, this sometimes caused problems in getting them to school.

"One of the problems is that the two older boys go to Collegiate and the youngest boy goes to Waterloo Primary School," Mr Lawson told magistrates.

He told how Allen's partner Louise usually took the two older boys to school, while the youngest was taken by a friend.

But if the friend was not available, Louise then had to take the youngest to school, leaving the older boys to make their own way.

Mr Lawson added: "The older boys have to be signed in at their school. If they chose to leave school Allen says what can he do about that?

"He cannot sit in school. He has to go out and make a living to keep his partner and children fed."

Blackpool Magistrates sentenced Allen to two months' imprisonment after he pleaded guilty to failing to ensure James regularly attended school between September 3, 2002 and January 10, 2003.