School Holiday Dad Wins Landmark Court Ruling

A father who refused to pay a £120 fine for taking his daughter on holiday during term-time has won a High Court ruling in his favour.

Mr Platt, 44, took his daughter on a holiday to Florida in April 2015. Her school, on the Isle of Wight, refused permission for the trip, but he took her anyway, meaning she missed out on seven days of lessons. Mr Platt was issued with a £60 fixed penalty fine, which he refused to pay. The council then doubled the fine to £120, which he also refused to pay.

Isle of Wight Council then prosecuted the 44-year-old, for failing to ensure that his daughter attended school regularly, contrary to section 444(1) of the Education Act 1996.

Mr Platt successfully argued that there was no case to answer, as the prosecution failed to show that the child did not attend school regularly, as his daughter's attendance remained above 90%.

At the High Court, Lord Justice Lloyd Jones and Mrs Justice Thirlwell dismissed the council's challenge, ruling that magistrates were entitled to take into account the "wider picture" of the child's attendance record.

Jonathan Bacon, leader of Isle of Wight Council, said:

"Today's ruling may be taken to imply that parents can take children out of school on holiday for up to three weeks every year.

"This will clearly have a detrimental effect on the education of those children."

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