1 Overview
Children must attend school regularly and on time during term time.
Your child can only miss school if:
- they are too ill to go to school
- the school has authorised the absence
4 Role of Pupil Entitlement: Investigation
When a child is recorded as absent from school without authority their parent(s) can be held accountable for an offence under S.444 of the Education Act 1996.
When unauthorised absence occurs, the school has the option to refer it to the local authority to consider intervention, dependent on the length and the reason for the absence. This can be by either a request for the:
- use of a Fixed Penalty Notice (FPN)
- allocation of an Investigating Officer
Referrals are reviewed and acted upon by Pupil Entitlement: Investigation (PE:I), who finalise which pathway of intervention is to be taken.
All cases referred to PE:I are considered on an individual, case-by-case basis, reviewing the submission made by the school. PE:I must be satisfied that an offence under the Education Act 1996 has occurred and then decide the form of intervention to be instigated, if any.
Interventions can be allocation to an Investigating Officer or the use of a Fixed Penalty Notice.
5 Role of the Investigating Officer
The Investigating Officer is tasked to ascertain whether the evidential requirements of the offence under the Education Act have been met. This is achieved by reviewing the submission from the school and by contacting the parent(s) and speaking to the child and other professionals. We encourage all parents to respond to our contact.
At the conclusion of the investigation a decision will be made as to the next steps which can include:
- the matter being referred to the Criminal Courts for non-attendance offences contrary to S.444 of the Education Act 1996
- the matter being referred to the Family Courts for the application of an Education Supervision Order - you can find information on ESOs on GOV.UK and by reading the supporting document below
- the case transferred to the FPN team
- the matter being closed
Supporting documents
6 Fixed Penalty Notices
What is a Fixed Penalty Notice?
Pupil Entitlement: Investigation (PEI) on behalf of WSCC holds the power to issue a Penalty Notice to a parent when evidence of an offence under S.444 Education Act 1996 is apparent.
An FPN is a time limited offer (which lasts 28 days) for a parent to accept their liability for the offence under S.444 Education Act 1996; failure to secure the regular attendance at school of their child.
The offence is evidenced by the school recording unauthorised absence from school, or in other words, the school cannot or has not given permission for the child to be off school.
Headteachers may not grant any absence during term time unless there are exceptional circumstances. Only a headteacher can authorise an absence from school and they do so based upon information known to the school and/or offered by the parent. There is no requirement on a headteacher to consider information offered after the fact.
Irregular attendance and/or an unauthorised leave of absence can result in parents being issued a Penalty Notice.
All FPNs are issued in accordance with the published Code of Conduct (see document below) and in line with the governments national framework relating to Penalty Notices Fines for parents for taking children out of school: What you need to know - The Education Hub.
When a Penalty Notice is issued
Under the national rules, all schools are required to consider the use of a FPN when a child has missed 10 or more sessions without authority within a 10 school week period. A session is a morning or afternoon attendance at school.
In addition, one may be issued if an excluded or suspended pupil is found to be in a public place during school hours. FPNs can be issued outside of these criteria and for less than 10 sessions if circumstances dictate.
Should the period of unauthorised absence be for a holiday in term time, which is for 15 school days or more, the use of a FPN may not be deemed suitable. Instead, the matter may be brought directly before the Magistrates Court.
Cost of a Penalty Notice
A FPN is issued to each parent or carer for each child at the rate of £160 and must be paid within 28 days. If this is the first FPN in a rolling 3 year period, a parent or carer will be given the opportunity to pay at a reduced rate of £80 so long as payment in made in the first 21 days.
For a second Penalty Notice issued to the same parent of the same child within a rolling 3 year period, the fine amount will be £160 if paid within 28 days and there is no opportunity to pay at the lower £80 amount.
FPNs are capped to two FPNs within any 3 year period. Once this limit has been reached, WSCC will either prosecute the parent or consider allocating an Investigating Officer.
A parent must pay the whole amount owed in one payment; a parent cannot pay in instalments of just pay part of the Penalty Notice.
Appealing a Fixed Penalty Notice
There is no right of appeal to the offer of a FPN, because it is a time limited offer for a parent to accept their liability for the offence. A parent can either choose to take up the offer or not.
Once issued, a FPN can only be withdrawn in line with the requirements of the published Code of Conduct (see document below). Should a parent feel the permitted criteria exists, they should contact our offices.
What happens if you don’t pay
If a FPN is not paid within the stated timeframes, consideration will be given to prosecuting the parent for the criminal offence of having failed to ensure their child attended school regularly. If found guilty at court a parent may be fined up to £1,000 for the standard offence or £2,500 for the aggravated offence. The court may also impose court costs.
A conviction for this offence will be recorded against the parent on the Police National Computer. This information may be shared as part of any Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) and Criminal Records Check.
What the income from FPNs is used for
The government has directed any monies raised through the use of FPNs must only be used to cover the costs of administering the system and to fund attendance support. Any extra money is returned to the government.
Paying a Fixed Penalty Notice
To pay a FPN you can either use our online payment system using the link below or call our payment line. The payment line is available Monday to Friday between 9.00am and 5.00pm.
You will need the unique reference number stated on the FPN and the FPN will offer you details of the amount you need to pay and by when. Should an underpayment be made, we will contact you regarding the outstanding amount.
Pay online (external link)- Payment telephone line: 01243 777505
Further information on legal action that can be taken can be found on GOV.UK.
Supporting documents
- Fixed Penalty Notice - Code of Conduct (absence before 19 August 2024) (PDF, 169KB)
- Fixed Penalty Notice - Code of Conduct (absence after 19 August 2024) (PDF, 154KB)
- Disputing Fixed Penalty Notice - FAQs (absence before 19 August 2024) (PDF, 58KB)
- Disputing Fixed Penalty Notice - FAQs (absence after 19 August 2024) (PDF, 132KB)
- Legal action guide for parents (absence before 19 August 2024) (PDF, 133KB)
- Brief guide to FPNs (absence after 19 August 2024) (PDF, 142KB)
7 Holidays in term time
Headteachers have been directed by the Government not to authorise any absence from school unless there is an ‘exceptional' circumstance.
You must get permission from the headteacher if you want to take your child out of school for a holiday in term time.
It’s up to the headteacher on how many days your child can be away from school if it is granted.
8 Contact our team
General questions around school attendance, including the use of penalties, can be answered by Pupil Entitlement Investigation (PEI).
For details on how we collect your data, see our pupil entitlement privacy notice.