Parents are being fined in record numbers for taking their children on holiday during term time.
The new statistics from the Department for Education (DfE) reveal that nearly 400,000 penalty notices were issued to parents in the 2022/23 school year – the highest number ever on record.
That was almost double from the year before when there were 220,000 – an increase of 83 percent.
A DfE spokesperson said: “Parents have a duty to make sure their child regularly attends school, and holidays should be around school breaks to avoid taking children out of school during term time.
“Our guidance is based on a support-first ethos; however, we support schools and local authorities to use punitive measures such as fines where it is deemed appropriate.”
Nearly 360,000 of those fines were due to unauthorised term-time holidays while just under 1,000 were due to late attendance. Around 42,000 were for other reasons.
Parents have a legal duty to make sure their child attends school, and if they don’t they can be issued with a £60 fine that must be paid within 21 days, otherwise the amount increases to £120.
If still unpaid after 28 days, the parents can be taken to court, where they can face fines of up to £2,500 or a three month prison sentence.
The statistics come as Shadow Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said it was a “mark of disrespect” to miss class for no good reason as it harms the education of pupils.
And she insisted parents must be fined if children skip school.
Ms Phillipson said: “Cheaper holidays, birthday treats, not fancying it today – these are no excuses for missing school. Penalties must be part of the system, but they cannot be the answer alone.”
She added: “Absences… make it harder for other parents, for every teacher, to hold the line. Every day matters.”
Fines are issued by local councils – and there is a lot of variation in the number being handed out.
Doncaster Council issued 16.2 fines for every 100 pupils in the area which contrasted greatly with Cumbria where 0.2 fines were issued for every 100 pupils in Cumbria.
