To invoke the ‘otherwise’ option for school absence?

The same reasons as the able bodied community must accept not getting disabled parking spaces provided,

Resources are limited, and it is only reasonable for it to be 'favorable' when it is meeting a genuine need, not a want.

No, it really won't. For the reasons pp have explained on this thread.
There is no possibility of "Flexi" schooling to suit people's holiday choices.

What would you like to happen OP? In respect of how schools keep children on their roll/parents can remove children at any time and put them back on again etc. What should the rules be?

So - start a proper campaign, perhaps became a School Governor. Maybe a Local Councillor or stand for Parliament as an MP.
Better than sending that letter to the HT, which won't have any impact on the education system whatsoever.

Except that's not progress, it's simply not putting the child's educational needs first, and ensuring their educational arrangements are in line with systems (including unschooling!) that will work for the child.

Chopping and changing in a way that knowingly damages the child's education is not in the best interests, and it's incumbent on the parent to ensure whatever they are doing is organized around the child's educational needs.

Traveling children with a Green Card are engaged in literal cultural learning that cannot be provided other than within the community and hands on experiance at specific times and places.

Private schools are able to cater to individual tailored plans to allow individual children time away without long term damage to their school based learning, partly because of staff numbers and dedicated educational pastoral care.

On line schools are able to cater for children trailing working parents abroad and indeed any parent seeking something more flexible, but not in a bricks and mortar placement. Their nature, means work can be undertaken at any hour, any where.

State schools are geared to a specific way of mass pile it high, lower teacher numbers, and pastoral care being less educational and more personal, and generally aren't geared up to be able to provide for time off without damage to the educational plans, any more.

I'm all for flexibility and home ed (we are a home ed family) but this was fought for by the genuine home ed community for specific reasons, mainly to do with actual well being, and stopping LEA's and schools plundering funding that no longer belonged to them, and was being applied for on behalf of their children.

Pupil Registration Regulations new changes: August 19, 2024
School Attendance (Pupil Registration) (England) Regulations 2024.

Parents must give reasonable written notice of intent and a set date of removal.

A school must delete a pupil's name from the admission register when receiving written notification from the parent or guardian that the child will receive education otherwise than at school and "that day has passed".

The law doesn't explicitly state deletion must occur the next school day, but are on shaky legal ground if they do not remove the child's name from the roll once the specified "last day" of attendance has passed. (assuming no SEN stuff, or School Attendance Orders)
The law does not provide for any ten day period or cooling off period, precisely because it would contradict the legal grounds for deletion off the roll.

IANAL. I am a parent who went to court to stop the school keeping a DC's name illegally on roll so they could keep getting the child's AWPthat they where not entitled to.

There's nothing worse than text filled with terms that the writer doesn't even understand.

So all this de registering for a holiday? Just go on holiday in the days that school are closed. If you want to home school, just home school. Stop with your shit letter because you want to save a few grand on a holiday.

Hang on though, having a fixed school in one place with fixed school holidays does work for most people (SEN needs aside) in that the child gets a decent education in a familiar environment with their friends, a teacher who knows them well and in a community that is normally close to where they live. That should be the measure of education, not whether you get to go skiing.

If you don’t like it then of course there is the option of home education.

Can you explain how the system you’re apparently advocating would work? For example-

• how would the school know, on a Monday morning, how many kids are going to turn up (and how many are skiing being home educated/ with their global nomad family)?
• how many classrooms are needed?
• how many teachers? What languages should they speak? How will they know what the kids can do?
• how would the LEA know how to fund the school;
• how would the LEA/ central government check whether children are getting an education at all- it would be so easy for kids to fall through the cracks;
• ditto what about safeguarding? School can be the only constant in a child’s life. If any parent can temporarily de-register an important link to protect abuse is lost (note in the tragic Sara sharif case the school did make reports);
• how can children build friendships and meaningful relationships with teachers and have fulfilling hobbies?

If what you’re saying is parents should be allowed to take their kids on holiday in term time with certain conditions then say so, Personally i think it just makes teaching harder and causes kids to fall behind. But don’t make out that the whole system is wrong/ outdated and needs replacing with a drop in crèche for older kids just because you’d like to go on holiday.

I'm sure the OP would have told the LLM to tell us were the OP a Traveller. Schools have specific registration arrangements for Traveller children & specific absence codes to reflect travel & attendance at other schools.

Children of the travelling community have some of the worst educational outcomes. Please don't pretend your children are at the same disadvantage.

The travelling community are not entitled to this with no restrictions. There are certain conditions, otherwise they are subject to the exact same rules.

This. Angelina Jolie brought her children up this way - tutors travelling with the children, flexible schooling etc.

Of course with salaries / staff travel costs and living expenses, it probably cost her a million or so a year but I’m pretty sure the children had a brilliant education.

The rest of us who don’t have that sort of money (or even money for a private school which often will hold a place if the fees continue to be paid) have to deal with state school rules or actually homeschool (which is a lot harder than some people seem to think).

Bloody hell, get a grip!

I’m a single parent who works irregular shifts. I’d rather my child had the stability of a regular school day/week even if it makes my life more difficult logistically. I don’t agree that parents should be able to pull their children in and out of school at will - how is this fair on the rest of the class? Teachers are under enough pressure without having to deal with children constantly missing things and having to be caught up.

Stop making out that you are some kind of social warrior speaking for others. You want YOUR voice heard, it’s as simple as that.

Agree.

Doubtless countless people have thought of this already and been disappointed.

If you want to take your children out of school, you take them out and lose the place. If you want the place, you send them to school as required or face a fine.

You risk losing your place especially if the school has a waiting list for places like my area.

Your selfish! Imagine if you had just moved to the area and were waiting on school places to be told “we actually have spaces but some kids have gone off travelling, so sorry we know we have capacity and you are waiting but we must hold this space open for when they have finished “making memories” and return” jog on and make a decision. Either go make your memories and face the conciquencies on return or don’t. You can’t have it both ways at someone elses expense!

This

OP, you seem to think that the school system should be designed for the convenience of parents rather than in the best interests of the child.

School isn't just free childcare that you can dip into when you fancy it. If you don't want to be constrained by attendance expectations and term times, then you have the option to home educate.

Don’t be a clown. That would be karma if you found you couldn’t get your place back when you tried to re-register.

You want your cake and to eat it too.

You are legally able to deregister. You just may not have a place to return to. The council will find you one somewhere though. Just don’t moan about where you get given.