Parent finds 'loophole' after studying new term-time holiday rules

Parents are being alerted over fresh guidance issued to schools about when to consider handing out fixed penalties for term-time holidays, with one claiming they've found a loophole.

The Department for Education has rolled out new rules aimed at managing school attendance, coupled with a revamped national framework for issuing fines and tweaks to the law itself. As of August 19, when the new laws kicked in, schools across the nation have been expected to toe the line on the updated legal advice.

With many families still opting to whisk children away during school days to avoid peak holiday tariffs a trend that surged last year this latest advisory comes with what some have flagged up as a potential 'loophole'. Schools now face an obligation - if a pupil's chair is empty for a block of five days or more, they must forward the case to their Local Authority for a possible Penalty Notice.

One switched-on parent at a Lancashire academy shared with LancsLive: "In theory that means that, as long as your child hasn't had any unauthorised absences already that term, you could book a holiday to start four days before the end of the year and not be reported to the local authority."

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However, just because a school isn't required to report you or your children to the authorities doesn't mean that they won't anyway. It's also worth keeping in mind that children who miss school are less likely to get good grades, and that absenteeism can make it harder for teachers to run their classrooms as they hope to.

One thing's clear though, schools aren't pocketing a penny from these fines despite a lot more admin landing on their desk. It's the council that dishes out the penalties and reaps any revenue.

Parents can only be issued a maximum of two penalty notices for the same child within a rolling three-year period. Therefore, if a third offence occurs (or any subsequent ones), another course of action will need to be considered, such as prosecution or other legal interventions related to attendance. This implies that if you take three term time holidays in three years, the local authority will initiate court proceedings. Only penalty notices issued for absences occurring after 19 August 2024 will count towards these thresholds.