School asking for flight details after unauthorised term-time absence abroad

[PersonalData]

We went abroad mon-thu last week, ds (10) was in school the week before and went back on Friday. We let them know and obviously knew it would be unauthorised. As it was 8 sessions we don’t qualify for a fine. His attendance is usually 100%.

They asked on friday before and after for us to provide proof of the flights and other details for ‘safeguarding’ but he was back in school and clearly fine ?? We declined as this is private personal data. They replied back that we must submit the evidence by the end of tomorrow?

Is this usual ?

I’m not even going to dignify this with a response

Not if you refuse to take on board that schools can have any processes for themselves to follow, but they do not have the power to impose them on parents.

It was a genuine question and I honestly don't know.

I am going to guess that if you were worried about a particular family, then yes, you would want train tickets or petrol receipts or whatever.

But that it probably wouldn't be a blanket policy for all families?

I don’t know either - not trying to be difficult, but I don’t see how proving you were in St Ives and not Swanage makes any difference to anything? And how would you prove it, anyway?!

They would have to do what you’ve suggested. My child has regular health appointments which are often agreed verbally so I have to ask the clinician to put it in an email and send a screen shot to school so they can log it as evidence that they have followed their attendance procedures.

If a child is persistently absent school will have to evidence that they have followed all the processes and offered support to escalate to attendance improvement.

Another example I can think of is where there is a parent doing everything they can to try and support attendance and working with services but for ‘safeguarding duties’ someone from school has to set eyes on the child regularly (might be every three days but don’t quote me) so they have to go to the home and say they’ve seen the child. Some children refuse to come down or the staff member will go in, say ‘yep I’ve seen them’ and log it on the system. Seems pointless but they have to evidence what they’ve done and that someone has set eyes on the child

You could extrapolate this argument and apply it anywhere. No one has to do a lot of the things we do each day to toe the line. That’s how society works. The majority of people do the ‘right thing’ and follow the rules. You’re boring me now so I’m going to stop responding. I explained the legal guidelines in good faith. You’re trying to pick holes and I’m really not bothered. I don’t necessarily agree with the policies or care about them. Enjoy your arguments. Seems like it really meets a need for you somehow 👍

I still can't see what the reason for it is. How does having flight details prove that a child is not in some sort of danger? Or, conversely, that they are? Even if you took a female child to Somalia for 4 days, if she returns back happy and talking about visiting relatives and in no apparent pain, it's a safe bet she's not been subjected to FGM. And if you were worried about that you would have already escalated the issue, Flight details wouldn't be remotely illuminating.

I also can't see the difference between going to Cornwall or Mallorca (or anywhere else that is a usual tourist destination for Brits).

They have to report an absence and what the reason for it was. They do not have to provide flight details. Apart from anything else, not everyone goes on holiday by plane! Imagine!

How do you not have a choice?

Whats the consequences if you dont provide it?

Even if persistent non attendance is the issue, how do flight details or the lack of flight details affect court action?

The absence is not authorised.

How does having flight details for the absences affect any of that.

The child wasnt in school. An explanation was given. The absence wasnt authorised.

A good question, the answer to which is conspicuous by it's absence.

Even though it has been asked many times.

I didn’t say they had to report flight details. They have to be seen to be doing their duty to explain unauthorised absences.

We're coming back to the same old questions.

If the school is given a copy of the flight itinerary (which they have no right to demand), what will they do with it that they can't do without it? ("Tick a box" is not an adequate answer.)

Seemingly nothing. The parent is just expected to "toe the line" as @Scrimblescromble
puts it, for no apparent reason.

So on the flip side of that, why wouldn’t you just provide it?

MYOB.

Makes sense 🙄

In my case I have data security experience in educational settings (amoung others) and awareness of how poor most SLT's understanding of data security is and how frequent cyber attacks are on schools. Most schools in the UK had a cyber attack and security breach last year. Schools have poor resources in terms of money and expertise.

And the "we have better things to do than gossip" is said in virtually all workplace settings where this sort of thing comes up, yet time and time again, people do gossip when they shouldn't and information that shouldn't be being passed around finds its way to people who shouldn't have had access.

Unless it's actually a law that parents must provide this information, then you can continue to decline. Their policies do not trump the law. There's always a choice.

Some people think you should "toe the line"

(Basil Fawlty)

"... well let me tell you this is exactly how Nazi Germany started ...."

Do I (God)win this thread ?

Imagine the time you’d saved if you’d just asked why instead of an immediate response of just no

Imagine the time you’d have saved by reading the whole thread or at the very least, my replies. Then you’d have seen that I did ask - multiple times, only to be fobbed off repeatedly.Seems they take more notice when a man goes in to ask face to face !

Could we please have an apology from all the people who insisted on this thread that this was nothing to do with safeguarding?

aaaaannnd the next thread from the Op about this school she supposedly has a good positive relationship with!!