To think 10 days off seems a lot in term time?

That’s fair enough, maybe the parents should have to pay for a tutor in that case then 🤔

Also some parents work in the tourism industry and no annual
Leave can be taken at peak (school
Holiday) times
People are so so self-righteous. Every single situation requires nuance and awareness of issues around term time
Holiday and no one should expect teachers to make up for lost learning!

There are no automatic fines in Scotland. But unapproved absences are frowned upon but ultimately head teacher will deal with "persistent absences " and one offs will be agreed.
Head teachers seem to acknowledge that a family holiday is as important as other parts of a healthy upbringing. The schools know who needs focusing on.
Much more sensible imho

Actually no, we don't. Union rules state that if a child is off for a holiday, we do not have to catch them up. If the child has gaps, that's on the parents.

But they have to catch them up in some way surely? If they have gaps that the teacher then can’t build on? I’m not in this situation so it’s irrelevant to me, I just think the school should get the money!

agreed

No way should it go towards catching the kids up!!

If you get caught speeding, you pay the and then pay on top to do an awareness course, the fine doesn't cover the cost of catching you up with the highway code.
Cost of tuition in my area is about £30-45 per hour. Your fine does not cover the cost of catch up. Unless you supported increasing the cost of the fine to cover this? Probably not, so when you go away you accept that either it's your job to catch them up or they don't know it but your child's teachers won't have the time and throwing more money at them won't provide them with more time either.

I’m sure people wouldn’t mind paying the fines as much if they actually went to the school and not the council. If anything they should go towards staff/resources to catch the kids up on what they’ve missed.

Why are you quoting me, and not the person I'm replying to who raised the idea?

Nobody is exploited by school holiday prices. They get bargain at quieter time as with any industry.

holiday businesses need the extra is peak season to allow them to function at a loss/break even during low season.

businesses won’t suddenly decrease holiday prices if prices are forced to level out. They will lose massive amounts at off peak times (who wants to pay full blast for Majorca in November!)

I went to school in the 80's/ 90's and it was really unusual to go on holiday in term time.

Like it or not we have an attendance issue in this country. Lots of families see school as optional and education standards are suffering.

You know it's supply and demand, and prices go LOWER off peak? Not the other way round...🙄

Fancy businesses trying to make money

I have all sympathy for teachers, but that's an unfortunate aspect of the jobs, maybe more holidays, but at the worst time.

Are you happy for teaching staff not to be exploited by the high prices too?

I don't remember anyone going on holiday during school time though

People missed a day here or there for funerals, very very rarely for a wedding - that didn't seem to be a thing to have them on a week day

but around me people didn't go on holiday out of the normal school breaks.

I don't give a monkey's if parents take their children out of my classes to go on holiday as long as a) I'm not expected to catch them up and b) I'm not held responsible for their lack of knowledge of work they've missed or their test results on it.

I'm in my early 50s and I don't think it was at all common for kids to go on holiday in term time when I was at school. Less so than it is now, in spite of the fines.

Such short memories so many posters here have. When almost all of us were young, this was acceptable and permitted. Chaos did not reign, fire did not fall from the sky, children were not unable to catch up, teachers did not weep with the extra work of catching them up.

It is just not the big issue you make it sound like. Kids and parents should be allowed holidays and not exploited by these school holiday price increases.

Op there are protests organised against school fines on the 8th March xx You're absolutely right.

I agree. I very much doubt a school skiing trip the week before half term is more "educational" than a family skiing trip during the same week.

They already are inconsistently applied. 1000’s of kids go to Glasto festival and the application of fines is totally inconsistent, some schools fine for it, some don’t, some ask for a homework project on the festival, etc.

It's not just about the kids catching up. Imagine you are a teacher with 35 kids in your class. One is off one set of dates, the other is off another set of dates. Times that by one half of the class - 17 kids - all off at different times. It's impossible and means that an already overworked teacher has to reteach the materials in many different ways. So stop and think - it's not just about your individual, specific situation. It's about being considerate to your community and how you are generating extra work for them by being selfish. I find it staggering how many people are just me, me, me.

Definitely not true here

Yes! Or giving them extra work to catch up (which teachers have to spend extra time to prepare). The blooming cheek, if they take them out the parents can pay for their private tutor too.

"And the last week before Christmas and summer is usually a joke with no learning going on"

This is rubbish, at least in secondary. Normal lessons except perhaps the very last day of term. Woe betide anyone staff member playing videos/films etc