With almost 2000 Northland students truant from school a week, the service in charge of combating the issue has been labelled hamstrung and ineffective.
Since the Te Tai Tokerau Attendance Service started last year the truancy rate in Northland has become the highest in the country. The Te Tai Tokerau Attendance Service was unable to provide comment on the figures or criticism by edition time.
However, president of Te Tai Tokerau Principals Association, Pat Newman, said he believed the service was trying hard but was just not effective enough.
"I believe they are hamstrung by inadequate resourcing to cope with the needs up here," Mr Newman said. "How effective [it is] I question because the children are still not back in school."
The issue will be discussed at the next Principals Association executive meeting. A Ministry of Education report snapshot of 2013 found 6.7 per cent, or 1931 students, of Northland's 28,822 students had unjustified absences over the week recorded.