A crackdown on truancy has been launched in a bid to cut the numbers of children skipping school.

Education welfare officers and police stopped 14 schoolchildren during the blitz in Mid Sussex.

If they could not give a valid reason for being on the streets they were escorted back to school.

Parents were also stopped if they had children with them to see if the reason for their child's absence was acceptable.

Philip Papps, education welfare officer for West Sussex, said: "We are sending a clear message to pupils that missing school is not an option.

"This is part of a wider strategy across West Sussex to ensure high levels of school attendance are maintained."