Warwickshire County Council issued parents with 1,721 fines over unauthorised absence from school last academic year – almost exclusively due to holidays.

Parents who take their children out of school for 10 consecutive sessions – five school days – without permission from a headteacher can be referred to the education authority for a fixed penalty notice of £160.

It follows national rules to try to clamp down on falling school attendance and to discourage parents and carers from booking breaks outside of traditional school holidays when prices tend to be significantly cheaper.

The numbers were part of a wider report on school absence that was considered by the children and young people's overview and scrutiny committee – a panel of councillors that asks questions of and offers feedback to relevant council departments and partners.

The report noted the number of fines had "increased slightly" with more linked to absences in 2024-25 processed at the start of 2025-26, citing "continued term-time holiday demand and changes in processing timelines" for the rise.

Cllr James Norris questioned why there had been an increase in fines when the county's rates of overall absence and persistent absence from school had fallen.

Jo Monk, a Warwickshire County Council service manager for school attendance, noted that "a lot" of the fines related to term-time holidays and detailed how the council takes an entirely different approach to persistent or severe absence.

"The working together guidance issued by the DfE (Department for Education) is very much about a support-first approach," she said.

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"What is being done, what support is in place, what other agencies need to be involved, making sure we are scaffolding a child and family to look at those barriers to attendance (are considered) before getting anywhere near penalty notices or any form of legal intervention. We have those things in the toolbox but we want to support those children to attend.

"Leave of absence penalty notices are quite different. There is a very clear framework, that leave of absence in term time should be in exceptional circumstances and it is the decision of the headteacher to authorise that or not.

"The vast majority of our penalty notices issued, certainly for the past academic year, were in relation to leave of absence, so that is parents choosing to take a holiday during the term time."

Cllr Norris asked whether the amount of parents booking term-time holidays was going up or whether schools had taken a tougher stance.

"It is a combination of the two," said Ms Monk.

"A lot of schools are saying they do need to be a bit more strict on this because the guidance is saying they have to, but we are also seeing parents continuing to take leave of absence in term time.

"There has been a slight change in the approach and the thoughts around that. If you ask the team they will definitely tell you that they are seeing more and more come through."

Parents have a legal obligation to ensure their children access education and those – the vast majority – who register their children with schools "must ensure they attend regularly and punctually".

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That includes "avoiding unnecessary absences, working with the school to resolve any barriers to attendance and not taking holidays during term time" unless they are authorised in "exceptional circumstances".

Penalty notices costing £160 can be issued if refused leave is taken, and the council has discretion to issue one before the standard five-day threshold is met if it "believes a penalty notice would be appropriate in an individual case".

The guidance adds: "An example of this is where parents are deliberately avoiding the national threshold by taking several term-time holidays below threshold, or for repeated absences for birthdays or other family events."

The tariff is halved to £80 for the first offence provided it is paid within 21 days but if a parent is fined again within three years, the full cost applies. A third offence within any rolling three-year period allows the council to exercise stronger action.

Legal interventions beyond fixed penalty notices during 2024-25 included 36 prosecutions, 78 cases which are pending court outcomes and 65 alternative statutory interventions, which include attendance contracts and education supervision orders. The data provided does not state if any of these cases relate to persistently taking holidays in term time.

"This reflects a balanced approach, using enforcement proportionately alongside early and preventative support," the report adds.