To think we can’t take the children out of school just to spend Christmas with DHs family

Except that the first few days of a new term is when new topics are introduced, and when DC does go back to school they will probably be confused about what’s going on in many lessons. I would share OP's concerns.

OP: I'm not saying don’t go away, because it’s obviously important to your DH, but be aware that this puts a big strain on teachers to give your DC individual attention when they come back, to help them catch up on what they’ve missed, and this naturally has an impact on the rest of the class. (And no, asking for work to take away with you is not the solution. DC needs to see and hear the same input from the teacher as the rest of the class.)

Would you be able to take them out but minimise disruption? My daughter is private and she returns on the 6th for example. You could leave on the 8th (having spent a week there I assume) and DC would be back to school on the 9th. Only missing 3 days instead of a full week?

This would work out better next year as they actually return on the 7th. On years she goes back earlier you could go to them on the 6th I.e Thursday and come back on the Sunday.

I wouldn’t worry about a couple of days, but wouldn’t let her miss a full week of new term.

It depends where you are. My primary aged children are due back tomorrow, and my secondary aged child on Tuesday. They’ll all be back on Thursday.

I would just start saving to pay any fines, limit the visits to 4 days after term starts back, request authorised religious exemptions and just be smart about it. I agree with your DH that the state attitude on this is so messed up we aren’t required to go along with it….
I am fully expecting a pendulum swing soon. It’s got silly.

Our private school never went back until the 7/8th, so then at least that would only be missing the first three days.

State schools will not allow you to be away for that long and will definitely fine and could possibly refer you to court if you continue to take them, so that's not an option every year.

I would check term dates for the schools you're planning to go to and then sound out the headmaster. Ours (private) would have been okay about missing the first couple of days for something like that.

Secondary schools all start back earlier, so it would only be until then anyway.

I dont think its unreasonable to be thinking about jt but you are definitely over egging it. It would very seldom be a full week, for a start. And certainly, while the dc arr small, assuming they are doing OK academically, I just dont see the problem.

Same. Ireland though.

My kids are at school in England, I take them out for a few days at the beginning of spring term every year to celebrate Reyes with family in Spain and we’ve never had an issue. It’s always been authorised.

Every single time I read a thread about the English school system I am grateful my kids go to school in Scotland.

I’m a teacher. Whilst they are young I’d take them out, missing a week of primary school at the very start of Spring term isn’t a big deal and absences for religious reasons are usually authorised. Schools can typically go back any day between 2nd - 8th so it won’t be necessary for them to miss a full week every year, some years they might be able to go back for a few days before going away or will only miss a day or two before the return but that’s something you can work out when your kids are actually at school and you know their term dates! There may be years where the dates means it doesn’t work or where you feel missing the time would have an impact, but I certainly wouldn’t dismiss the idea of it ever happening again. Some things such as links to family and culture are more important than a week of school!

God forbid we raise children who have critical thinking skills and can decide, on balance, what is the right thing to do, rather than automatons who just do as they are told.

Op I'd be taking him out of school for valuable family time and cultural enrichment. Maybe not every year, perhaps as he gets older you could offer to host, but certainly I'd be going for the early primary years. My oldest is in year 3 and she's missed school to attend family weddings in the states and Australia, and a couple of days to accompany DH to a speaking engagement in Mauritius. Other than that she's got great attendance, has never finished a year below 95% and is doing very well at school. Fortunately she attends a reasonable school who have never referred us (or to the best of my knowledge any other family) for a fine.

I wouldn't worry too much in primary school. The only years I wouldn't miss the start is their very first year. I'd want them to settle in with the others and not disrupt that.

School should be okay as it’s a religious observance. They could authorise 3 days - one for Christmas and one each side for travelling. That way, you would have 2 days unauthorised which isn’t a fine.
I would definitely speak to school (and not just the week before breaking up in December).

Ukranian christmas is russian orthodox christmas, even Z tried to make people celebrate it on 25th by law this year everyone i know still worked in december and plan to celebrate on 7th as usual

Looks like the mother is the only one who has thought ahead and actually considered what starting school means.

This was my thought too. I would say that it won’t need to be every Christmas or none: private schools have much longer holidays and there have been many years when my kids have gone back on 11 January! And yes, when you’re talking about a child in early primary school, I’m sure you will be allowed an extra day or two at the start of term and it won’t have a detrimental impact on your child. But as they get older, it might well be a different story. Most private schools have entrance exams around the 6/7 January. Mock exams tend to start then. Even in the pre GCSE years, things ramp up significantly and it won’t be great to miss an important test or a few days of learning that they’ll need for the exam syllabus. So I think you will definitely need to look at it and consider things on a year by year basis, rather than take the “oh - it’s a religious celebration/it’s great for them” as a blanket point of view.

The current rules around attendance are ridiculous.

Of course there is a relationship between attendance and results, but there are so many other factors involved as well.

There is a huge difference between absence for cultural, family, involvement at a high level in sports/Scouts/ whatever in a family where education is valued, versus absence because parents can't be bothered to get their child to school.

But the government can't measure/change parents value and support for education, they can only legislate on the externals e.g. attendance.

My family live in Spain and we visit every year for Reyes. My kids usually miss the first 2 days back at school after Christmas. This year they’re due back on Tuesday and we fly home on Wednesday.
It’s never been an issue.

I don't think it's a big deal of they miss a week each year at the same time, for a good reason. You can all prepare for this, but you'll need the school on board ideally.

I certainly wouldn't be worrying about this before secondary age. And by then, who knows what will be going on.

I so agree with the PP upthread who said "I don't see why you or anyone would assume school comes first in this instance. But the english system has people in some weird chokehold i guess."
My parents lived abroad when I was young and sent me to a highly academic girls' grammar which had a boarding section, 50-odd girls were boarders out of 700.
I flew out to join my parents for the summer holidays. I hardly ever made it back to England for the start of the September term, and when I was older and booking my own flights, I made sure of it. (Flights were often only once a week).
My best time arriving back, from my point of view, was around September 21.
So, 10 GCE O levels, three A levels, one S level and a decent degree later it didn't seem to harm my education and future prospects at all as far I can see.
And it's not as if the current draconion approach is highly successful in aiding parents who may be somewhat lacking in feck to get their kids to school.
I'm not saying the old ways were better, obviously I was swinging the lead more than a little and there is also the very real problem of children who are school refusers, but the current inflexible system still fails to address the issue it was designed for.

(DS went to a good comp in the late 90s and due to work/holiday constraints we took him out of school from time to time. He too somehow managed to do very well at school and in his career. No fines then. We would have sucked it up if there were. )
It's the totalitarian mindset that I deplore.

I think a week at the start of term is too much. I'd be willing to look for a way to do it without missing school though, eg -

Flying out during the Christmas holidays and back on 8th.

Asking family if they'd be willing to celebrate on 5th instead.

Hosting celebrations yourself in UK so dc would only miss one day of school

Finding a private school that has longer hols

Going out for Easter instead

I would be taking mine out for the first week if I were you. Especially while in the first infant years - as long as you do 10 mins of maths and 10 mins of phonics with them each day you are out you are covering most of what they learn in infant school anyway.

Not all a child’s education happens within the school building. I think it’s easy to lose sight of that when faced with attendance records and fines etc.

Bit anyway, YABU that you'd just decided that as if you are the only one with any authority. It should have been a conversation not a statement.

This!!

haven’t voted - this YANBU to be as whole week every year does seem a lot but YABU to expect your children who are half Serbian to miss this important cultural and religious date and time with their family they often do not spend time with every year too.

Come to a compromise - either prioritise when kids are younger and then obviosuly exam years you may feel more strongly that they don’t miss school or do alternate years or just miss 2-3 days like you said in OP - go the day before and come back the day. If you’re worried the kids can make up all the work they’ve missed when they’re back.

OFFS I didn't say every child who misses some school will turn out the same way!

But Aristotle wasn't wrong about habits formed before 7 years old.