Fines dished out for unauthorised family holidays look set to face a fresh hike.
Education Secretary Gillian Keegan is planning to overhaul England’s fine system as local authorities will be brought under a “national framework” to tackle inconsistencies.
The Department for Education claimed fines “must be considered if a child misses five days of school for unauthorised absence”.
Local authorities currently have wide variation over whether to levy fines.
A record 350,000 parents in England were fined for taking their children out of school for unauthorised holidays in 2022/23
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New rules would impose penalty notices at £80, up from £60.
However, parents who delay payment beyond 21 days will have fines raised from £120 to £160.
Schools will also share daily registers online with the Department for Education and local authorities.
The Government hope the proposals will bolster attendance following a post-Covid slump.
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Education Secretary Gillian Keegan, leaves the weekly cabinet meeting
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Keegan said: “Our fantastic schools and teachers unlock children’s imagination, potential and social skills, which is why improving attendance is my number one priority.
“Today we are taking that next step to further boost attendance and I want to thank those who are working with us, including teachers and heads.”
A record 350,000 parents in England were fined for taking their children out of school for unauthorised holidays in 2022/23.
The figure was 20 per cent higher than in the last full academic year before the coronavirus pandemic.
Labour’s Shadow Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said: “The Conservatives are only just waking up to the damage of persistent absence that has reached historic levels on their watch, but their answer addresses the symptoms of absence, not the causes.
Rear view of teenage girls and boys learning in classroomGETTY“Persistent absence was rising long before the pandemic, the result of growing unaddressed mental ill health, the impact of years of economic decline hitting family finances and a breakdown of trust between schools and families.”
Geoff Barton, the general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, highlighted how most fines were applied for term time holidays but added absences were often related to mental health problems.
He said: “There is a wider issue about absence relating to the growing number of children who suffer from anxiety, families who are struggling to cope, and disengagement with education, which schools are endeavouring to address by working with families and pupils to improve their attendance rather than using fines.
“Schools need more help from the government in this work, both in terms of the funding they receive and investment in local social care, attendance and mental health services.
“Education has become an unofficial fourth emergency service, picking up the pieces for a decade-long erosion of support services. This cannot go on.”
