Parents often know their children are playing truant from school, the government claimed today.

Speaking as it was announced that a recent crackdown on truancy had identified 12,000 youngsters, education minister Stephen Twigg called on parents to do more to make sure their children go to school.

During a one-day nationwide sweep, 900 truancy patrols in England found that a significant proportion of the 12,000 youngsters picked up were with their parents.

Of those stopped ,32 per cent were of primary age and 68 per cent were of secondary school age.

He urged parents to act more responsibly - stressing that allowing children to stay away from classes has a major impact on their futures.

"One of the most alarming aspects about these figures is the number of children stopped with a parent or responsible adult," said Twigg.

"Around half of the children stopped with a parent and had no good excuse for being out of school. Some of the reasons they did supply were unacceptable.

"This is a situation that cannot be allowed to continue. Parents have to take responsibility otherwise they are jeopardising their children's future."

"We are clear that as a government we have to tackle this problem head on and have put considerable resources behind it.

The minister said that parents "have a vital role to play in ensuring that their children are in school when they should be".

With parent Patricia Amos jailed last month for failing to send her teenaged daughters to school the issue is high on the political agenda and the government is keen to appear tough on the issue.

Ministers have set the target of cutting unauthorised attendance by a third by 2002.

Police have been given extra powers to deal with the problem and more than £500 million has been set aside over three years for schools to spend on projects aimed at improving attendance.

The issue has remained a thorn in the side of education ministers - with 0.7 per cent of all half day absences over the last two years due to truancy.

The rates are highest in inner London where statistics last year showed 2.2 per cent for primary schools and 1.4 per cent in secondary schools.

Ministers are keen to show they are attempting to solve the problem, with reports linking it to the other "hot issue" of teen tearaways.

Twigg admitted there was a strong link between truancy and crime.

"If children are not attending school then they are not learning and that has very serious implications," he said.

"By missing out on school they are limiting their potential and putting themselves at risk of drifting into crime and drug and alcohol misuse."