The cost of school absence: How data-driven fines are helping councils tackle truancy

Authored by Julie Scorer, Digital Transformation Community Lead for Education at MRI Software.

The post-pandemic attendance challenge

With the start of the new academic year underway, the education secretary has issued a warning of the dangers of poor attendance at the start of the new school term and how this could set a precedence for the rest of the school year. Unauthorised school absences are on the rise and local authorities across the UK are turning to data-driven solutions to address the issue head-on. In the 2023/24 academic year alone, an estimated 149,900 children were reported as missing education at some point, a sharp increase of 28% from 117,100 the year before.

To combat this, councils have ramped up the use of Fixed Penalty Notices (FPNs). The latest government figures reveal a 22% rise (from 2022/23 to 2023/24) in fines issued since the latest enforcement measures came into effect, with 9 in 10 issued for unauthorised family holidays. These fines not only serve as a deterrent but also generated up to £58.5 million in additional income across all local authorities; funds which can be reinvested into early intervention and support services.

MRI’s FPN Portal is at the heart of this transformation. By integrating with Gov.UK Notify and back-office systems, the portal helps streamline the entire process, from issuing notices to tracking payments, reducing case handling time from 30 minutes to 2 hours down to just a few minutes in some cases.

From insight to action: The power of FPN’s

Bradford Council has seen remarkable results. After implementing MRI’s FPN Portal with a rollout to over 200 schools, they achieved a £100,000 increase in revenue in just four months. The streamlined, transparent process has significantly reduced administrative burden, allowing the council to scale back its reliance on temporary staffing and reallocate resources more effectively. Schools and local authority staff now benefit from faster processing, improved communication, and a more efficient online payment system—making the process smoother for everyone involved.

Stoke-on-Trent City Council is another standout example. By adopting MRI’s Education Single View, the council have the ability to connect the dots and change the story by breaking down data silos between education, social care, and youth offending teams. This real-time data sharing has empowered frontline workers to act faster and more effectively, laying the groundwork for broader interventions in areas like food poverty and substance misuse.

Building the future of attendance intelligence

As councils continue to balance enforcement with support, tools like MRI’s FPN Portal are proving essential, not just for compliance, but for creating a more responsive, data-informed approach to education and welfare.