Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many fines were issued by his Department for non-attendance at school by children in 2017.

Penalty notices are issued to parents by schools, local authorities or the police for failing to ensure that their child, if of compulsory school age, regularly attends the state-funded school where they are registered or at the place where alternative provision is provided for them.

The statistical publication “Parental Responsibility Measures in England: 2016 to 2017” includes the numbers of penalty notices issued in England in table 1. The release is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/parental-responsibility-measures-2016-to-2017-academic-year.

The most recent figures cover the 2016/17 academic year.

The Department collects and reports on parental responsibility measures information from schools in England only. Education statistics for Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland are available from the relevant departments.