How school absence crackdown has led to thousands of holiday fines for Yorkshire parents

In a 39 week school year more than 3,800 fines were issued to parents in Leeds - the vast majority for taking holidays in term time. Full story...

In Leeds the number of parents fined for any unauthorised absence since guidelines were tightened up has increased from 219 in 2012/13 to 2,320 in 2013/14 and up again to 3,824 in the 2014/15 academic year.

The number of fines specifically for taking pupils on holiday in term time has risen even more sharply.

In 2012/13 - before the guidelines for schools changed there were 105 parents fined across Leeds for taking pupils out of school without permission. Under the previous system schools could allows parents up to ten days .

Under the new system the number of fines increased to 2,180 in 2013/14 and to 3,573 in the academic year which has just finished.

Coun Lucinda Yeadon, the city council’s executive member for children’s services said: “Following the introduction of new government legislation in September 2013 which removed head teachers’ discretion to authorise any absence during term time for holidays, we have seen an increase in the number of fines issued for unauthorised leave during term time – which is to be expected.” However she said that the city recorded its best ever attendance in 2013/14 and said the council always “encouraged parents to think twice before booking holidays during term time”.

Penalty Notice fines are £60 per parent per child if paid within 21 days. If not paid within 21 days but within 28 days the fine doubles to £120. If parents have still not paid after this they can face prosecution.

Since the Government guidelines on unauthorised school absences changed the number of fines across the region has risen sharply.

In 2013/14, the first academic year under the new system there were just under 15,000 fines issued - compared with around 4,500 a year earlier.

And the most recent figures show fines are contiuning to increase with more than 20,000 imposed in the 2014/15 academic year.

Bradford has also seen a rise in fines. There were 462 fines issued under the old system in 2012/13. However in 2013/14 this increased to 1,893 and last year it was £3,319.

The council said that money raised from the fines is reinvested to support the administration costs of the system and to support work with schools to improve attendance.

A spokesman said that its local area code of conduct stated that fines could be issued if a child misses five or more school days.

There has also been a sharp increase in Sheffield with 2,103 fines issued for holidays in 2014/15 compared with 1,196 in the first year under the tougher guidelines and just 79 in 2012/13 before the rules changed.

The figures obtained by the Yorkshire Post show the number fines for unauthorised absence and those specifically for taking pupils out of school for a holiday without the school’s permission. In every authority area holidays in term time is the main reason parents are fined.

The changing of guidelines on school absence has resulted in increases in the number of parents being fined in all but of the education authorities in Yorkshire,

The Yorkshire Post has obtained figures showing year on year rises in Barnsley, Bradford, Calderdale, Doncaster, the East Riding, Hull, Kirklees, Leeds, North Yorkshire, Rotherham, Sheffield, Wakefield. Fines can be issed for any kind of unauthorised absence from school.

In Rotherham all of the fines issued since the change of guidelines have been for parents taking their children out of school for holidays rather than for truancy.

The council have issued 112 fines in 2013/14 and another 145 in the last academic year. The council said it was a policy decision to impose fines for only term time holidays.

In York the council has only issued four fines in 2014/15 of which two were for term-time holidays. In 2013/14 after the tougher guidelines were introduced it did not impose a single fine. A year earlier it had imposed just two.