Parents have a legal responsibility to ensure their child’s attendance at school.  During the academic year, pupils are at school for 190 days and at home for 175 days.

The Education (Pupil Registration)(England)(Amendment) Regulations 2013, state that Headteachers may not grant any leave of absence during term time unless there are exceptional circumstances. The Headteacher is also required to determine the number of school days a child can be away from school if leave is granted.

Please complete and submit the Leave of Absence form if you want the Headteacher to consider your request for your child’s leave of absence for exceptional circumstances. We may ask for proof to validate your request.

Penalty Notices

If parents take their children out of school without authority for 5 or more days (which do not have to be consecutive), they will be liable to receive a penalty notice. Currently, the amount payable under a penalty notice is £60.00 per parent/carer per child if paid within 21 days.  Thereafter, the amount increases to £120.00 if paid between 21 and 28 days. If the penalty notice remains unpaid after 28 days, the Local Authority will consider a prosecution in the Magistrates Court. Please note that penalty notices are issued per parent/carer per child, so a family of two parents and two children will receive 4 penalty notices.

Surrey County Council is not responsible for authorising pupil absence and therefore cannot withdraw any Penalty Notice requests without the written permission of the Headteacher.