Parents 'face £1,000 fines' for taking children on holiday during term time
Lancashire County Council hopes to tackle unauthorised pupil absences from school
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Parents could face being fined thousands of pounds if they take children on holiday in term time.
Lancashire County Council is considering issuing fines of £1,000 per child per parent in an effort to clamp down on unauthorised school absences, according to the Sunday Times.
Currently parents in the county face a penalty notice of £120 per child – but under the plans a family with two children at the same school could now receive a £4,000 fine.
Last week, Sarah Richardson, headteacher of Balladen Community Primary School in Rossendale, wrote to parents to warn them of the proposals.
The letter said: “Holidays must not be taken during term time and government legislation prevents schools from granting leave of absence unless there are exceptional circumstances.
“Lancashire County Council are currently trialling a new system for dealing with unauthorised holidays and breaks during term time.
“This involves an increase in the financial penalty to parents of up to £1,000 per parent per child rather than the current fixed penalty notice of £120 per parent per child.
“This system is still at the pilot stage, but please be aware this may come in to effect at some stage.”
In 2016-17, Lancashire County Council issued 6,876 fines to parents for unauthorised absences – one of the highest rates in the country.
Councillor Susie Charles, cabinet member for children and schools, told the Sunday Times: “We are considering any possible action that could be taken in the future to reduce unauthorised absences.
“This is at an early stage.”
It comes after unauthorised absence rates in England reached a record high last year.
Around one in six (16.9 per cent) pupils missed at least half a day of lessons due to a family holiday during the 2016-17 school year – up from 14.7 per cent, government figures show.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments