Penalty notices for unauthorised absence

Department of Education (DfE) National Framework for Penalty Notices.

• National Threshold
• Cost of a penalty notice
• How to pay
• Code of conduct

National Threshold

• There is a single consistent national threshold for when a penalty notice must be considered by all schools in England of 10 sessions (usually equivalent to 5 school days) of unauthorised absence within a rolling 10 school week period.

• These sessions do not have to be consecutive and can be made up of a combination of any type of unauthorised absence.

• The 10-school week period can span different terms or school years.

The following changes will come into force on 19th August 2024.

• All schools must consider whether a penalty notice is appropriate in each individual case where one of their pupils reaches the national threshold.

• The pupil must have at least 10 half days of unauthorised absence (equivalent to 5 school days) within a rolling 10 school week period

Cost of a penalty notice

First offence

The first time a Penalty Notice is issued for term time leave of absence or unauthorised absence the amount will be:

Second offence (within 3 years)

The Second time a Penalty Notice is issued for unauthorised absence the amount will be:

Part payments or payment plans are not acceptable, and fines must be paid in full within 21 or 28 days, at the rate specified within the penalty notice.

Payment after the deadline may be accepted in exceptional circumstances. In this situation, the higher amount of £160 is usually payable and must be paid immediately and in full.

When paying a penalty notice fine, parents are essentially agreeing to an out of court settlement in respect of the unauthorised absences to which the notice refers. Payment in full against the penalty notice discharges the parent’s legal responsibility for the period of unauthorised absence outlined in the Notice and the parent cannot be subsequently prosecuted for that period.

Third offence and any further offences (within 3 years)

The third time an offence is committed a Penalty Notice will not be issued and the case will be presented straight to the Magistrate’s Court. 

If you don't pay the penalty notice in the given time, Hertfordshire County Council will prosecute you (if the notice hasn’t been withdrawn).

Where pupils move between local authority areas, Hertfordshire County Council can be contacted on crossborder.penaltynotice@hertfordshire.gov.uk to find out if penalty notices have been issued previously, so that appropriate escalation of fines may be applied in line with the national framework for penalty notices.

Per parent, per child

Penalty Notice Fines are issued to each parent, for each child that was absent. For example: 3 siblings absent for term time leave, would result in each parent receiving 3 separate fines.

Section 576 of the Education Act 1996 (Section 576 of the Education Act 1996) states that, in relation to a child or young person, a ‘parent’ includes any person who is not a parent (from which can be inferred ‘biological parent’) but who has parental responsibility for or care of the child.   

Parent refers to a person who typically has care of a child or young person if the child lives with them either full or part time and they look after them, irrespective of what their biological or legal relationship is with the child.

How to pay

Code of conduct

All penalty notices must follow our code of conduct. We make sure that every case is treated consistently and fairly.

Parents can't appeal once a penalty notice has been issued. We might withdraw a notice if it's been issued by mistake.

Please contact FPN@hertfordshire.gov.uk if you have any queries