More penalty notices were issued to Isle of Wight parents for withdrawing their children from school to go on holiday last year, new figures show.

Penalty notices are handed out if a child frequently misses school and costs either £60 if paid within 21 days of receipt or £120 thereafter.

If it is not paid in four weeks, the local authority must either prosecute or withdraw the notice.

Department for Education figures show the Isle of Wight Council handed out 1,426 penalties to parents and guardians for their child's persistent absence in the 2022-23 academic year.

Of them, 1,413 (99 per cent) were issued due to students being taken out of school for holidays – up from 634 the year before.

Before the pandemic in 2018-19, 1,804 penalty notices were issued for unauthorised holidays.

The National Association of Head Teachers said these fines are "too blunt" and are becoming ineffective.

Across England, nearly 399,000 fines were issued in 2022-23 – a 20  per cent jump from pre-pandemic figures.

About 356,000 (89 per cent) were for unauthorised holidays, as families looked to book cheaper vacations outside school term times.

It has more than trebled since 2016-17, when 116,000 such fines were imposed.

A Department for Education spokesperson said: "We know that regular school attendance is vital for a child’s education, wellbeing and future life chances."

They added: "Parents have a duty to make sure their child regularly attends school, and holidays should be around school breaks to avoid taking children out of school during term time.

"Our guidance is based on a support-first ethos, however we support schools and local authorities to use punitive measures such as fines where it is deemed appropriate."