Bradford Council has issued almost £1 million absence fines

A Freedom of Information (FOI) Act request sent to the local authority by Legal Expert showed £914,907 in fines were handed out to those taking their children out of school during term time without permission, across the 2021/22, 2022/23 and 2023/24 academic years.

Legal Expert sent FOIs to all metropolitan councils and unitary authorities in England.

It revealed that Bradford Council handed out the highest amount of fines across all 88 of those that have responded so far.

Councillor Sue Duffy, Bradford Council's executive member for children and families, said: “We want all children to attend school as regularly as possible so they have the best chance to receive the education they deserve.

“In Bradford district the rate of children missing school due to unauthorised leave is more than twice the national average. This is reflected in the number of fixed penalty notices we issue at the request of headteachers.

“No one wants to fine parents, but children’s education must come first.

“Where there are barriers to regular attendance, families are offered support to overcome them and get the child back in school. However, the vast majority – about 90% - of fines are issued for term time holidays.

“Improving school attendance remains a top priority for everyone working with children in Bradford district as poor attendance can negatively impact young people’s academic achievement, social development and future prospects.”

The next closest metropolitan council is Wakefield, dishing out £896,880 in fines across the three-year period, then Kirklees with £666,321, and Tameside with £467,000.

Bradford Town Hall (Image: Shahid A Khan)

Leicester City Council has the highest total - £700,000 – out of all the unitary authorities.

The number of penalty notices handed to Bradford parents has almost quadrupled this year, compared with 2021.

There were a total of 3,425 penalty notices given out by the local authority to parents in the 2021/22 academic year, with 11,960 in 2022/23 and 12,634 for this year so far.

The country was coming out the other side of the Covid-19 pandemic at the start of 2021, with schools beginning to reopen in March of that year.

Figures for the whole of England seem to indicate this had an impact, dramatically dropping from 333,388 penalty notices for unauthorised absences in 2018/19 to 45,809 in 2020/21.

They then rose to 398,766 in the 2022/23 academic year.

It comes as new guidelines will mean term-time holiday penalties rise after the summer holidays.

Parents who flout the rules could be hit with hefty fines of £160 if they take their child out of school for an unauthorised absence from August.

As it stands, unauthorised absences can see parents slapped with a £60 fine which increases to £120 per child if it is not paid within 21 days, with the potential for prosecution for non-payment within 28 days. 

Tom Bright, Bradford branch secretary of the National Education Union (NEU), warned in May this year that schools in Bradford were “tearing their hair out” in attempts to get more children to consistently attend school.

The council already put in place new measures in April 2023, in an attempt to toughen up on parents who fail to get their children into school during term time.

Families taking two or more periods of unauthorised leave, or four or more weeks, in a 12-month period could now have legal proceedings taken against them via the magistrates’ court, instead of issuing a penalty notice.

Schoolchildren who aren't pulled out during term time are also missing out (Image: PA)

This may mean a significantly higher fine - up to £2,500 per child, per parent - if found guilty, as well as a criminal record.

In rare circumstances, magistrates can consider a custodial sentence for up to three months.

New education secretary, Bridget Phillipson, told the BBC in her first interview in the role there "will have to be consequences" for parents who fail to stick to the rules.

She said it was important that parents “honour our responsibilities” and that children being off has a wider impact as teachers “often have to recover material” because the absent child has missed out.

Parents who don’t pay the fine in time can be subjected to further action, which could include an Education Supervision Order, Community Order, or even a Jail Order.

The new national legislation coming into force from August comes alongside a fresh national framework.

This will require schools to consider fines when a child misses ten or more sessions – five days - without permission.

According to the Department of Education: “Fines are a last resort, and parents will be offered support to help improve their child’s attendance first.”

But it does admit that “the vast majority of fines for unauthorised absence - 89 per cent - are issued for term time holidays.”

Full research from Legal Expert is available here: legalexpert.co.uk/how-to-claim/council-and-local-authority-compensation-claims/unauthorised-pupil-absence-fines/