Parents and guardians in one part of England have been hit with fines totalling almost £100,000 for taking their children out of school without permission, new data reveals.
Scale of Fines for Unauthorised Absence
Between September 2024 and November 2025, North Tyneside Council issued a staggering 1,283 penalty notices to families for unauthorised absences. The total sum collected from these fines amounted to £98,120.
The standard fine is set at £80 per child, per parent for the entire period of absence. However, if the penalty is not paid within 21 days, the amount doubles to £160. The council confirmed that any money received is reinvested into support services that work with schools to improve attendance.
Government Rejects Call for Term-Time Holiday Allowance
This crackdown on unauthorised absence comes after the government firmly rejected a popular petition last year. The petition, signed by 181,597 people, called for parents to be allowed to take children out of school for up to 10 days without facing a fine.
Introduced by Conservative MP Robbie Moore, the petition argued that many families cannot afford the high cost of holidays during school breaks. Despite widespread public support, the government rejected the call in October. School Standards Minister Georgia Gould warned that the country was still confronting an "absence epidemic".
Consequences and the National Attendance Crisis
Failure to pay a fine or continued unauthorised absences can lead to serious consequences. Parents risk prosecution, which could result in a fine of up to £2,500, a community order, or even a prison sentence of up to three months.
Mark Mirfin, North Tyneside Council's interim director of children's services, emphasised the importance of regular attendance. "When children attend school regularly, it has a direct and positive impact on their learning, their opportunities and their long-term success in life," he said.
While North Tyneside's absence rates remain below regional and national averages, the national picture is concerning. A report by the Centre for Social Justice highlighted that persistent school absence has reached crisis levels. Department for Education figures show that in autumn 2024, about 147,000 pupils in England (2%) were severely absent, missing at least half of their lessons.
Despite some improvement, with the overall absence rate falling to 6.9% in 2024/25, Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson acknowledged the ongoing challenge, stating the government was working to "turn the tide on a crisis that saw a generation go missing from England's schools."
