Fines for parents whose children miss school during term time to rise from September

Parents will face higher fines from September this year

Fines for parents who take their children out of school during term time will rise by 33% – with fines potentially reaching up to £160.

From September a fine will be considered for all parents if a child misses five days of school for an “unauthorised absence”. Currently, the fine sits at £60 if a parent pays within 21 days rising to £120 if they fail to pay. From September 2024, the initial fine will increase by £20 to £80, going up to £160 if they fail to pay within 21 days.

Alongside this, all state schools in England will share their daily attendance registers with the Department for Education (DfE), local councils, and trusts in a bid to improve school attendance. Each authority will have access to this data with the move aiming to highlight children who have “worrying trends of persistent absence”. A new national attendance ambassador has also been appointed – the chief executive of the Northern Education Trust and founder of England’s first attendance hub Rob Tarn – to support the sector to improve attendance.

Education Secretary Gillian Keegan said: “Our fantastic schools and teachers unlock children’s imagination, potential and social skills which is why improving attendance is my number one priority. Today we are taking that next step to further boost attendance and I want to thank those who are working with us including teachers and heads. Education standards have risen sharply across the country, with Ofsted ratings up from 68% to nearly 90% since 2010 – and pupils’ performance is ranked as some of the best globally – so it has never been more valuable to be in school.”

From August, the Government will also publish statutory guidance on how schools and local authorities must take a ‘”support-first” approach to help pupils and their families tackle barriers to attendance. The “Working Together to Improve School Attendance” says regular meetings between schools and councils will take place to agree on plans to support the “most at-risk” absent children. This includes students who have ill mental health.

General secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, Geoff Barton noted that most fines were applied to parents who took children on holidays during term time. Alongside this, higher absences were often due to issues such as mental health problems. He said: “There is a wider issue about absence relating to the growing number of children who suffer from anxiety, families who are struggling to cope, and disengagement with education, which schools are endeavouring to address by working with families and pupils to improve their attendance rather than using fines.

“Schools need more help from the government in this work, both in terms of the funding they receive and investment in local social care, attendance and mental health services. Education has become an unofficial fourth emergency service, picking up the pieces for a decade-long erosion of support services. This cannot go on.”

In 2022-23, out of a total 399,000 penalty notices, a record 350,000 parents in England were fined for taking their children out of school for unauthorised holidays. The total was 20% higher than in 2018-19, the last full school year before the pandemic.