Bradford City Council Cut Costs and Raise Revenue with Fixed Penalty Notice Processing

Key Achievements 

• £80,000 saved by removing the need for temporary staff 

• £100,000 additional revenue generated in four months 

• End-to-end processing time drastically reduced 

• Duplicate data entry eliminated 

• Real-time FPN status visibility for 200 schools 

• Seamless integration with existing systems and Gov.UK Notify 

Manual Processes Were Slowing Everything Down 

Bradford Council’s Education Safeguarding Service faced a mounting challenge. Penalty notice volumes were rising, temporary staff were brought in to manage the backlog, and schools were left in the dark about FPN progress. Communication relied on insecure and inconsistent channels, while admin teams were stuck duplicating data across multiple systems. 

The process wasn’t just inefficient – it was expensive, slow and lacked the transparency needed to manage 200 schools effectively. 

MRI’s FPN Portal Provided a Faster, More Transparent Solution 

The council implemented MRI’s Fixed Penalty Notice portal, fully integrated with their existing MRI Education system and Gov.UK Notify. The new setup introduced a clear five-step workflow for schools, removed the need for double entry, and enabled single-click generation and dispatch of notices. 

Real-time status updates are now available to all stakeholders via a secure e-communications portal – no chasing, no ambiguity. 

200 Schools Onboarded in a Single Hour 

The rollout was fast and decisive. After one briefing session, Bradford launched the system across all 200 schools simultaneously. A go-live date was set, referrals via the portal were mandated from that point, and support materials were tailored for each school. 

Onboarding experience with MRI was seamless. It’s easy to configure and set up, we can set it up the way we want it to be.

John Leese, Education Safeguarding Service Manager, Bradford Council 

£80,000 Cost Elimination 

The most immediate impact? The backlog vanished – along with the need for temporary admin support. Bradford Council saved £80,000 simply by cutting the overheads tied to processing and chasing penalty notices. 

Having MRI’s FPN portal in place means we can work more effectively and efficiently to issue the notices and get them out.

John Leese, Education Safeguarding Service Manager, Bradford Council 

£100,000 Revenue Increase in Four Months 

With a faster, clearer process in place, the council was able to issue penalty notices more efficiently and at higher volumes. Within four months, this led to £100,000 in new revenue – offsetting costs and supporting wider attendance initiatives. “It’s achieved pretty much everything we set out to achieve.” comments John.

Admin Time Reduced Across the Board 

By removing duplicate data entry and introducing automatic progress updates, council staff could refocus their time on higher-value tasks. Schools no longer had to chase for information – everything they needed was visible in the portal from the moment a request was submitted. 

The other important thing is transparency. Schools can easily see when requests are reviewed by the team, and when those are paid or not, via the portal.

John Leese, Education Safeguarding Service Manager, Bradford Council 

A Secure, Transparent Process for Schools 

The e-communications portal provided more than speed – it gave 200 schools instant visibility into the status of their referrals, along with the reassurance that data was being handled securely. For the first time, every school had the same clear view of the process, reducing friction and confusion. 

Positioned for Long-Term Success 

Bradford’s FPN transformation is already paying off. With costs down, revenue up, and schools engaged, the council has laid the groundwork for a sustainable, scalable model of digital attendance enforcement. And with the parent payment experience now streamlined, further gains are expected in future. 

Thank you to the team at Bradford City Council for their time with supporting this case study. Special thanks to John Leese, Education Safeguarding Service Manager, Richard Crane – Assistant Director, Schools and Learning and Kate Hopton – Head of Service, Education Safeguarding and Admissions.

Ready to See What MRI Education Could Do for You? 

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