Peterborough parents fined more than £400,000 for unauthorised absences in just three years - as rules set to change
All you need to know about new rules being introduced in September
Parents are being urged to make themselves aware of a new change in the way schools will handle unauthorised absences going into the new school year.
The introduction of the new National Framework for Penalty Notices will see penalties increase in line with the number of unauthorised absences within a three-year period.
The change comes as recently released data shows Peterborough Council has issued more than £460,000 worth of fines to parents for unauthorised pupil absences since 2021.
The data – which was obtained via Freedom of Information requests by Legal Expert – represents an increase of 185% over the past three years.
Presently, unauthorised absences can see parents hit with a £60 fine. This can increase to £120 per child if it is not paid within 21 days, with the potential for prosecution for non-payment of 28 days.
Peterborough City Council confirmed 791 cases were sent for prosecution following non-payment.
There were 289 instances where the fine was not paid within 21 days.
Overview of main Penalty Notice Fine changes
The new rules, which come into effect from 19 August, will differ to the current regulations in a number of ways:
Per Parent, Per Child:
One of the main changes in the new guidelines is that Penalty Notice Fines will now be issued to EACH parent, for EACH child that was absent.
So, for example: if three siblings were absent without authorisation, EACH parent would receive three separate fines, i.e. six fines in total).
Five consecutive days of term-time leave:
From August, fines will be issued for term-time leave of five or more days which have not been authorised by the school.
10 sessions of unauthorised absence in a 10-week period:
Under the new guidelines, Penalty Notice Fines will be considered when there have been 10 sessions of unauthorised absence within a 10-week period.
At present, it is the responsibility of the local authority to decide if or when to issue fines to parents, an approach which varies from council to council.
Under the new national framework though, that decision will rest with the schools themselves.
Offences and fines
The amount a parent will have to pay in fines will be determined by how many offences they make:
First Offence:
The first time a Penalty Notice is issued for unauthorised term-time leave (or irregular attendance) will amount to £160 per parent, per child (if paid within 28 days), or £80 per parent, per child (if paid within 21 days).
Second Offence: (within three years)
The second time will be £160 per parent, per child if paid within 28 days.
Third Offence and any further offences: (within three years)
A Penalty Notice will not be issued in the case of an offence happening for a third time. Instead, the case will be presented to the Magistrates’ Court where fines of up to £2,500 can be levied - per parent, per child. Cases found guilty in Magistrates’ Court can show on a parent’s future DBS certificate as a ‘failure to safeguard a child’s education.’
Though the rise in penalty fine amounts is in line with inflation, it is the first increase since 2012.
It adds, “Any extra money is returned to the government.”
Sharing the new guidelines on its social media platforms, Peterborough City Council emphasised that “Being in school is important to your child’s achievement, wellbeing, and wider development.”
According to National Statistics, the overall national absence rate in state-funded primary, secondary and special schools, Autumn term 2023/24 stood at 6.7 per cent.
The rate of absence in state-funded primary, secondary and special schools across the East of England was 6.5 per cent.