§ Baroness Blatchasked Her Majesty's Government:
Why they are proposing to raise the level of fines for parents found guilty of their children's nonattendance at school when they stated in the Written Answer by Baroness Blackstone on 18 May (WA 37–38) that they do not know the average fine levied or the number of parents who have received the maximum fine of £2,500. [HL4321]
72WA
§ Baroness BlackstoneOur proposal to raise the level of the fine for non-attendance at school is one of the measures in our strategy to combat truancy highlighted by my right honourable friend the Secretary of State for Education and Employment on 19 October. It will give legal effect to the announcement which he first made last year. The £2,500 maximum fine is the subject of a clause in the Criminal Justice and Court Services Bill currently under consideration.
Every day at least 50,000 children are off school without permission—the majority with their parents' knowledge. Even when prosecuted, 80 per cent of parents do not appear in court and can be fined as little as £10. Recent evidence shows that some parents are fined an average of £50 to £100, and a number incur fines at the maximum level of £1,000. But more detailed information on the numbers of parents found guilty and average fines is not held centrally and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
Raising the level of the fine will help combat the unacceptable culture that condones absence from school without permission. Most importantly, our proposal will force parents prosecuted for school attendance offences to turn up in court to face the consequences of their actions, or risk arrest. It will also give Magistrates greater flexibility when deciding on the fine level to impose when parents are found guilty.