A MUM working nightshifts has been fined for failing to ensure the regular attendance of her two children at school.

The mother of two – who cannot be identified due to a court order preventing the naming of her children – appeared before magistrates sitting in Swindon on Tuesday where she pleaded guilty to the offence.

Swindon Borough Council prosecuted the woman in her 30s for failing to ensure the regular attendance of her primary and secondary school-aged children between January 4 and March 11 of this year.

The woman explained she had been working mainly nightshifts, which were 12 hours long, but had since changed her shifts to work days, which had seen an improvement in the children’s attendance at school, but the family had suffered a knock-on financial loss.

She was fined £35 for the absences, ordered to pay costs of £30 and a victim surcharge of £20.

The woman also faced a charge of using a TV without a licence, which she had missed her day in court for last autumn. She had been convicted and ordered to pay a fine of £512. Having learned of her financial situation the magistrates reduced this fine to £35 with a contribution of £10 towards costs and a £20 victim surcharge.