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Jon Platt

Isle of Wight father, Jon Platt, rose to national fame in 2015 after refusing to pay school absence fines he’d received from the Isle of Wight council (IWC).

Mr Platt had taken his six year old daughter on holiday during term time and argued – when taken to court by the IWC – that as she had over 93% attendance recorded the decision to take her out of school for a few days was his decision as a parent to take.

Isle of Wight Magistrates threw out the case, saying Mr Platt had no case to answer. The IWC took the case to the High Court for clarification. Mr Platt won again. The Department for Education then ‘requested’ the IWC appeal the decision in the Supreme Court and took over the case.

In April 2017, Supreme Court judges ruled in favour of the appeal and returned the case to the Isle of Wight Magistrates court. They ruled in favour of the IWC and Mr Platt was given a 12-month conditional discharge and ordered to pay £2,000..

Mr Platt appeared on national TV and was hailed a hero around the country for fighting the local council.

Macro shot of paper money

2, November 2015·2 min read

Jon Platt school holidays fine case: Council reveal possible cost of High Court action

The cash-strapped council say there has been no interference by the Government and their decision to to appeal is solely on the interpretation of the law on school attendance. It won't be cheap though!

Judges

30, October 2015·2 min read

Jon Platt school holidays fine case: Council launch High Court appeal (updated)

The magistrate said Mr Platt had no case to answer for non-payment of school absence fines, as his daughter had over 90% attendance. The council say they will seek clarification from the High Court on a matter of law.

Courtroom gavel

19, October 2015·1 min read

Jon Platt goes national with landmark Isle of Wight school fine triumph

Nettlestone resident Jon Platt, who took his daughter out of school for six days for a family holiday, was told he had no case to answer by Magistrates as she had an almost 94% attendance record. It's a landmark ruling for parents across the country.

shame on you posters - duo

11, March 2015·1 min read

Campaign to shame owners of abandoned Sandown shops launched

Photos of empty parking bays in Sandown have sparked another push from residents for owners of empty shops and untidy sites to get their act together.

Sandown explanade -

10, March 2015·2 min read

Extension of parking charges is killing local trade say Sandown businesses (updated)

The introduction of parking charges on Isle of Wight seafronts from 1st March has had a detrimental effect on the trade say Sandown businesses.

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