Fines for parents not sending their children to school are to be re-imposed in Wales. The Welsh Government has announced that schools can again use fines as a last resort.
Education Minister Jeremy Miles announced the change as part of the lifting of Covid restrictions in schools. You can see live updates from his press conference here. More than one in 10 children are still absent from school on average and you can read what headteachers have been saying about that here.
Mr Miles has also announced that all Covid rules are to be scrapped in schools. See that full announcement here. In a letter to headteachers on Tuesday, May 3, he said: "While Fixed Penalty Notices have been available to Local Authorities during the pandemic, we have generally recommended against their use.
"We are now at stage where we can revert back to the previous policy, where they can be used as a last resort. We remain clear that fines are to be used in only the most extreme cases, as part of a range of options and when all efforts of family engagement have failed and it is evident that there are no underlying reasons that are impacting upon attendance at school.
"Effective immediately, we are advising Local Authorities to revert to guidance on the use of FPNs, contained within the 2013 guidance on penalty notices for regular non-attendance at school."
More than one in 10 children are still absent from school on average and you can read what headteachers have been saying about that here
Latest Welsh Government absence data shows around 15% of children are absent and some have not returned since the pandemic started two years ago. Teaching unions and parents have said they did not support fines resuming saying they could make the situation worse for some families.
Headteachers respond
Responding to the changes NAHT Cymru said: "The use of fines in schools continues to be a controversial one. The jury is still out on whether fining parents actually has the desired effect on attendance.
!Our position remains that schools should work with parents to find out the reasons behind continual periods of absence before making any move to fine families. Our members tell us that there is still a great deal of anxiety amongst parents and learners, exacerbated by mental health concerns.
"NAHT Cymru believes the focus should be on supporting schools to find out what the issues are and bringing in those support services to address them. Too often there are underlying concerns that go far beyond the responsibility of a school to resolve and that’s where other agencies must be brought in to help.”
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