Holidays during term time

The law states that for your child to be considered to attend school regularly they must be at school every day they are required to be there by the head teacher. This was confirmed in a Supreme Court ruling in 2017.

Therefore, you must get permission from the head teacher if you want to take your child out of school during term time.

You can only do this if you make an application to the head teacher in advance (as a parent the child normally lives with). The head teacher will then decide whether to agree the leave of absence and whether this is marked as authorised or unauthorised in the attendance register.

Please note that head teachers are only permitted to agree a leave of absence in term time for exceptional circumstances.

If an absence is authorised by the head teacher, they have the discretion to determine how many days your child can be away from school.

Fines and prosecution

You can be fined for taking your child on holiday during term time without the Head Teacher's permission.

The threshold for Penalty Notice fines is 5 days / 10 sessions of unauthorised absence over a 10-school week period. When a school becomes aware that a child absence has met the threshold, they must consider whether a penalty notice should be issued.  

Penalty notices are set at £160 (per child, per parent) and must be paid within the statutory 28-day deadline.

The first Penalty notice fine issued to a parent is reduced to £80 if it is paid in full, within 21 days of issue. All fines must be paid within 28 days of issue otherwise parents may be prosecuted in court.

A second fine issued to a parent/carer for a child who is absent from school without authorisation is fixed at £160, with no option to pay at a reduced rate if the fine is paid within the first 21 days.  

Parents/Carers can only receive a maximum of two fines for any individual child over a three-year rolling period for an unauthorised absence from school.

 A third request for a fine within a three-year rolling period would result in the matter being referred directly to the Magistrates court. 

If a parent/carer is prosecuted at court, they could receive a fine of up to £2,500, a community order or a jail sentence of up to three months. The court could also give you a Parenting Order.

Parents who decide not to pay a fine and contest the matter in court should seek independent legal advice before doing so.

Frequently Asked Questions

If you have a question about the Penalty Notice Fine you have received please review the FAQs [PDF].