New research has found that school holiday fines are at a record high in England. A record 443,322 fines were issued in England last year, according to figures from the Department for Education. These figures show a 24% rise on the year before.
From August 2024, the Department for Education introduced a new national framework to bring councils more in line with one another and to raise first time fines from £60 to £80. If that fine isn’t paid within 21, the fine increases to £160. Should a parent be fined a second time for the same child in three years, the cost is £160. And for a third time, other action like prosecution could be considered, as well as a court appearance which could result in a fine of up to £2,500. The Department for Education has said that money from the fines goes to the local authority. Education secretary, Bridget Phillipson, said that “Tackling the epidemic of school absence is everyone’s responsibility – government, schools, parents, and children – we need a national effort to get young people back in the classroom.” But what do you think? Can holidays be educational or should the fines stay in place in order to protect education?
From August 2024, the Department for Education introduced a new national framework to bring councils more in line with one another and to raise first time fines from £60 to £80. If that fine isn’t paid within 21, the fine increases to £160. Should a parent be fined a second time for the same child in three years, the cost is £160. And for a third time, other action like prosecution could be considered, as well as a court appearance which could result in a fine of up to £2,500. The Department for Education has said that money from the fines goes to the local authority. Education secretary, Bridget Phillipson, said that “Tackling the epidemic of school absence is everyone’s responsibility – government, schools, parents, and children – we need a national effort to get young people back in the classroom.” But what do you think? Can holidays be educational or should the fines stay in place in order to protect education?
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NewsTranscript
00:00It's been found that almost nine in ten of fines which have been distributed to parents
00:08were for unauthorized holidays, as families look to book cheaper holidays outside school
00:13turn times. This comes according to figures from the Department for Education. Guidance
00:19has even suggested that schools and local authorities must take a support first approach
00:25to help pupils and their families tackle barriers and attendance. Increasingly, Paul
00:31Whiteman, General Secretary of School Leaders Union, said that when plans were first announced
00:37that good attendance is obviously critically important, but fines have long proven to be
00:42a blunt tool and largely ineffective at improving persistent absence. Some supporters of term
00:50time holidays have argued that the holidays can serve as an educational space for young
00:54people wherein they can learn about the world and different cultures outside of the classroom.
01:01Those opposed to term time holidays have said that it's important that a child's education
01:07does not suffer and that they don't have to catch up on any schoolwork they may miss in
01:12that time. According to a recent YouGov survey which asked respondents if parents who take
01:18their children on a term time family holiday should be fined, 30% who answered said yes,
01:24yet 56% of respondents said parents should not be fined. It's been reported that some
01:30parents have even said that the fines have been worth the money due to memories made
01:35on the trip and, of course, the amount of money saved. It's been reported that since
01:40the Covid pandemic, authorised absences for illness and unauthorised absences have remained
01:46really high in schools, with children's mental health being one of the biggest reasons cited.
01:53In terms of region, the place with the most school holidays fined and distributed was
01:56Yorkshire and the Humber.