Legal action to enforce school attendance

Local councils and schools can use various legal powers if your child is missing school without a good reason. They can give you a:

Parenting Order

This means you have to go to parenting classes. You'll also have to do what the court says and improve your child's school attendance. This is ordered in the Magistrates Court.

Education Supervision Order

If the council thinks you need support getting your child to go to school but you're struggling, they can apply to a court for an Education Supervision Order.

A supervisor will be appointed to help you to ensure your child attends school regularly. The local council can do this instead of prosecuting you, or as well. This is heard in the Family Court.

School Attendance Order

The local authority has a duty to issue School Attendance Orders if it is not satisfied that a family is educating their child. This order would require the family to enrol their child at a school identified by the local authority.

You have 15 days to provide evidence that you've registered your child with the school listed in the order or that you're giving them home education. If you don't, you could be prosecuted or given a fine.

Fine (also known as a penalty notice

If a pupil takes unauthorised term-time leave for 10 sessions or more in a rolling period of ten weeks, their parents may be issued with a penalty notice. The penalty is £80 per parent, per child. This increases to £160 if paid after 21 days but within 28 days for pupils who are of statutory school age. If a penalty notice remains unpaid, parents may be subject to court proceedings for failing to ensure the regular school attendance of their child and this could result in a fine of up to £2,500 and/or a term of imprisonment of up to 3 months per parent.

For second offences of unauthorised term-time leave (10 sessions or more in a rolling period of ten weeks) within a three-year rolling period, the penalty is a flat £160 per parent, per child.

For the third offence in a three-year rolling period, the referral will be considered for direct prosecution in relation to Section 444 Education Act 1996.

These fines will apply to term-time leave taken after 19 August 2024.

See Penalty notice for school non-attendance for more information and ways to pay a Penalty notice.

Prosecution

You could get a fine of up to £2,500, a community order or a custodial sentence up to 3 months. The court may give you a Parenting Order.