STAFF at a school in Accrington have gone hi-tech in a bid to beat truancy.

A new computerised registration system has been introduced at Moorhead High School, Queen's Road West, to keep a track on the pupils' attendance.

And headteacher Andrew Bateman credits the technology for new figures which show a three per cent increase in attendance and a reduction in truancy.

He said the initiative, believed to be the only one of its kind in Lancashire, has even had a positive knock-on effect on the students' academic achievements.

Mr Bateman said: "We wanted to do something about our attendance problem and try a new strategy.

"If a child is not in school they are not learning.

"This system eradicates the bureaucratic process of pen and paper and makes things much simpler."

Teachers use a computerised register at the beginning of each lesson, meaning pupils can be tracked with the click of a button to see if they have been at school all day.

Mr Bateman added: "Teachers can now see at the start of a lesson if a missing pupil has been at school earlier in the day and then take appropriate action.

"It is not just about checking if students are skipping lessons, we can also alert parents via mobile phone for security reasons. Safety is paramount and parents respect this."

To manage the system a full-time attendance manager has been employed. Mr Bateman said that meetings are arranged with anyone who scores less than a 75 per cent attendance record.

Pupils are encouraged to maintain a high attendance with incentives including being able to have a say in end of term trips and offering certificates and prizes at the end of the year for those who excel.

Mr Bateman added: "The initiatives have had a massive knock-on effect on achievement which can only be a good thing."

A spokesman for Lancashire County Council said: "Every school has got their own truancy policy and in terms of Lancashire schools Moorhead's system is quite unique."