Many children think it's all right to bunk off school when there's better things to do outside.

But it's all too easy for them to get sucked into an indolent way of life which can quickly lead to petty crime.

Increased truancy has become a big problem in many schools up and down the country, including parts of Sussex.

That's why there's a lot of interest in a project in West Sussex which can result in surprising rises in school attendance.

Instead of routinely accepting some children have unacceptably large amounts of time off, it tries to analyse whether they are lazy, ill or being bullied.

Once the root of the problem has been tackled, it is often easy to bring the children back to school.

It also helps by getting their parents involved as, at present, many do not even know their children have been missing lessons.

In Brighton and Hove, there have been successful schemes that involve ringing up parents each time a child does not attend to see if the absence is authorised.

Once youngsters know every absence will be scrutinised, some will be less keen to skip lessons.

They may be grateful in the future they stayed at school long enough to build the basis of a career.