Parents anxious about the spread of Covid-19 face fines if they do not send their children to school.

South Gloucestershire Council has confirmed action will continue to be taken where a pupil is “absent without good reason”, while Bristol mayor Marvin Rees said it is up to individual headteachers to decide whether to impose a sanction because they know particular families’ circumstances.

Both local authorities say they are confident parents and kids will respond positively to going back to school, with Mr Rees stressing the importance of attendance from the start of term when teachers give youngsters vital safety messages and how to conduct themselves.

Asked about the prospect of parents being fined if they kept children home because of coronavirus fears, the mayor said: “It is quite a finely balanced issue.

“The truth of it is that the school will be in a better position to understand what is going on in the life of those children, those families, those parents, than I am.

“I really think it would depend on the circumstances.

“If a headteacher sees that a family is genuinely agonising over this and it is very real, they may choose to take a more lenient line.

“Sometimes there are issues in families, for example children for whom the home is not the safest place.

“A headteacher may know of a family and might think that actually these are not legitimate concerns and they are undermining the safety of the child.

“So I really think it varies too much.

“It is best for us to work with and back the expertise of our schools,” said Mr Rees at a press conference on Wednesday, September 2.

Meanwhile, a South Gloucestershire Council spokesperson said they were confident of a “really positive response” to returning to school.

He said: “We know that our trusts and schools have worked exceptionally hard to put in place measures to ensure the safety of our children and young people.

“We are asking our schools to work with parents, carers and communities in achieving the successful return.

“If parents and carers have any concerns, we do ask that they liaise directly with trusts and schools and are confident in the assurances they will be offering.

“We are also sharing our key public health messages as a council on the safe return of our children and young people through various platforms including our council website and social media.

“Local councils and schools have always accessed various legal powers if a child is missing school and these include fines – these will continue in those circumstances where a child is absent without good reason.”