Can schools issue fines for absence during very hot weather?

[CanTheyFine]

I’m planning to keep my dc off tue/wed/thu due to the heat - can schools actually fine for this ? Or is it only for holidays that they do this ? Or do you have to have at least 10 unauthorised sessions ?

Hopefully they do. Unless you drip feed about a serious health condition then it's not an acceptable reason to miss school.

Of course it won’t. 2 children in a house Vs 30 children in a classroom, doesn’t take a genius to work out which kids will be hotter!

We have an AC unit, they can relax in a cool
room they’ll be a lot more comfortable

This week is predicted to be about 5 degrees hotter than the hottest day in '76, certainly in the London area. We were dealing with temps in the low 30s then, not almost 40.

Sp why would your house be that much cooler?

Yes they can issue fines. YABU.

We don’t have massive windows and we have an AC unit which school doesn’t. They can also relax and have cold drinks/lollies etc all day if they want. Paddling pool etc etc it’s much easier to keep them cool at home

Bit bemused how many posts there's been about home not being cooler. I wouldn't have thought it unusual to have a home you can keep at lower temp than a classroom with 30 odd bodies in it, not to mention the ability to wear anything you like.

I wouldn’t keep off personally but if you think it will help them, can you speak to school and ask for the work they would have been doing to do at home? I’m guessing they are going to get very bored stuck in one room for 3 days.

I’m not agreeing with OP’s plan. But how you got through a cooler heatwave doesn’t matter. It was cooler!

In my case, because we have air conditioning in three rooms (they feel like fridges when we turn it on), a shady garden and they will have constant access to ice lollies and water/ a pool.

Contrast that with dd's secondary school, a new build that is almost entirely made of glass. Adding to that, they have not relaxed uniform rules (dd still expected to show in tie and blazer or face detention), and the only communication we have had is that they might walk them 15 minutes away to the local woods for pe as it will be more 'shady'.

The kids will have d&v. The school can try and disprove that if they wish.

And also, many people didn’t get through it. There were thousands of excess deaths.

People who use 1976 like this need to let it go. It wasn’t that hot by the standards of the last few years. It was hotter in 2022 and no one ever wangs on about that.

Our school has just emailed to say they are closing each day at 12 as they can’t keep the classrooms cool, and they have nowhere cool for pupils to go as they won’t be allowed outside…… hopefully your school may follow suit.

my son has complex needs and compromised lungs. He has struggled all weekend already and required oxygen etc. I have already told school.he will not be in at all this week..He requires an aircon unit to.even begin to.be able to breathe comfortably. Humid weather puts a strain on anyones breathing as the air is more dense with less oxygen in it so you have to work much harder to breathe and pull in enough oxygen . .People dont understand this if they have no.experience of it and many excess deaths are caused by hot humid weathet each year .

Teacher here - year 4 - classroom on the first floor, only 4 windows open 2 inches wide each, 1 measly fan, two walls of glass, each window about 2 metres high. 3 of my walls are in the sun all day, it literally moves around us. I hope that my parents keep their kids at home. Our outside has no shade, there is nowhere else for us to go, it’s going to be horrific. Can’t shut the blinds as they’re navy and just soak up and absorb the heat making it even worse.
FYI every human body gives out roughly 100 watts of heat (the same as an old school lightbulb) X that by 32 (30 kids and 2 adults) in a room with no air and you might begin to understand why so many people are worried about how children will cope with school.

edited to add OP just call in sick and say the heat is affecting their asthma / eczema or that they have a sick bug.

They have to prove they are not sick.

No they don’t!

What a snowflake society.
One day those kids may be commuting into work on the tube in a heatwave. Or work in a non AC office. And COPE.
Is the boss meant to say oh ok stay home and piss about in the garden and run riot through supermarkets?

Yes, schools can fine and I hope they do. We are all doing out best this week. Why have YOU got to be the exception?

Adults are generally less vulnerable to heatstroke than children. Some schools are still insisting children attend in inappropriate uniform (blazers ffs), and many new school buildings resemble greenhouses.

Why does it make you so irrationally angry that some children, that you don't know, won't be going to school for a few days?

Get a grip, snowflake.

All? I can't help feeling you might be sadly disappointed in the attendance figures on the hottest days this week, especially in England on Wednesday given the world cup game the night before.

Speaking of snowflakes, bit emotional to make this about you. Which is what you're doing with the 'we', as though your activities this week have anything to do with decisions for someone else's kids. A grown adult should really be able to cope better.

because her children, one in particular have serious medical conditions exacerbated by hot humid air. How ignorant can YOU be.

Why all the handwringing? It appears no fines will apply so keep them off, ignore all the puritans who are only concerned with being holier than thou. They are YOUR kids, you know what's best so do that.

Just ring in and say they are ill.

I can work from home , with my air conditioning on. I would be desperately unwell if I had to go into the office

I don’t think people realise how severely the heat can affect things like eczema, for example they hardly tolerate spf as it is when the temperature is as high as it’s predicted to be spf really aggravates their eczema. if they are at home they don’t need to have any applied at all. My worry is that school won’t see it as a reason to be off

With severe asthma, knowing how schools aren't great with understanding what an exacerbation might look like, and if it is a known trigger, I'd keep them off if it allows them easy unfettered access to their reliever and so they have a more knowledgeable and undistracted eye on them.

Eczema though, I don't think so.

I think this is a hard one.

I can't imagine that any children are going to be able to fully concentrate this week. They are going to be cooler at home than school because they can strip off and lounge around, i think most teachers are also concerned about keeping the pupils and themselves cool (i appreciate some schools maintain very draconian rules).

However, @CanTheyFine you do need to think a bit more rationally.

High temperatures are getting more common and hotter. You can't keep them off school every time it's hot. You know them best but I dont see how today is going to be any different in managing their symptoms than the next few days- today is hot!

If you are checking about getting a fine, it gives the impression that its more about their comfort rather than health.