holidays in term time

[ruledbyheart]

Yes probably am being unreasonable but I am looking at booking our first family holiday next year only to a haven holiday camp but thought it would be nice for the DC to have a holiday and for me it would be the first since I was 16, But 2 of my 4 dc will be in full time school only reception and yr1 and I have found out I cannot take them out in term time.

I have looked into the prices and to go term time it would only cost us £150 but if we stuck to the school holidays the price quickly jumps to £450.

I think its disgusting as a family on an extremely low income (less than 12000PA) we cannot afford to go on holiday, factoring all our costs I need to save about 100pm to be able to afford to go in term time which will be very tight and impossible to save enough to go during school holidays.

WIBU to just take the children out of school for one week its not like at the ages of 4 and 5yrs they would miss much or do I not risk it (Ive heard rumours you can be fined?) and have to wait a lot longer for a holiday?

Yes english but in the sense of a choice of when to go on holiday there are 13 weeks to choose from!!

The point I was making is that it usually, for me anyway, equates to two weeks. I find the notion that teachers only work 9-3 very strange! I also think the holiday cost disparity is shocking.

We all work hard and many threads have discussed how hard teachers work - no-one is disputing that. With academies etc it is evolving all the time.

Gove and his gang are determined to undermine teachers at every turn. Is this 'no term time holiday' thing just another way of trying to divide teachers from parents?

Owlina there is no way to legislate for holiday company prices as those are down to economic realities for those companies.

Sometimes it canbe cheaper to holiday somewhere with different school holidays to you eg Scottish schools break up earlier than English so there might be a saving for scots to holiday in England at the start of their hols

Teachers did not ask me if I thought it would be okay for my dcs to miss a day of school last week when they decided to close the school and strike. Maybe the school should be fined as my dcs missed a very important day of education and socialising

Also, in today's target/progress obsessed educational culture a week is a LOT of missed learning time. Every lesson counts in the ongoing assessment process. Want to send your kid to a 'good' school then making sure your children attend is part of the deal.

If you aren't fussed about league tables, OFSTED judgements etc then don't moan if your kid is allocated a place at a 'bad' school. You can take 'em out willy nilly and be happy that you're contributing to overall poor school performance.

Its the way schools are now. Heads don't like it, teachers don't like it - but we are judged on everything including, and especially, attendance. It's not personal and if people are angry they should challenge the current culture that this and previous governments are forcing on schools and are subjecting kids to.

Personally on a human level, I think there's nothing wrong with term time holidays at all. But in today's school environment it's damaging to schools and that's why HT's are really hardline about it.

Reading back i see i didn't make that very clear, i did say 13 week's holiday, which is perhaps not reflective. I was trying to make a point about how different jobs would have different expectations of when holiday could be taken.

I do know teachers work in the holidays - i certainly do!

None of the jobs I've had over the past 20 years has been free from restrictions on when you can take holidays, it's part of life not just when at school.

In my personal experience term time holidays don't just impact the child on holiday. I've lost count of the times dd has said they haven't started their new topic because someone is on holiday or they've redone something because someone else had been on holiday. Or even worse dd has missed out on a fun class activity to help someone catch up after their holiday.

Before I'm flamed illness is different because it's unavoidable.

blueblue thats the point of a strike - people feel so strongly that they are prepared to do this, even though it affects the children.

Double standards imho

bluebluecow - it's not teachers who decide about term time holidays. It's guidance from the government that schools are legally obliged to follow. Equating that with teachers striking over drastic changes to pay and conditions being forced on them is disingenuous and silly.

grumpy i wouldn't do that, if you are not here you miss out. You are right, that is unfair on those who are there!

blueblue Why do you think people do this job? We do care about education you know.

Not all teachers strike. I'd only strike over issues affecting the children directly not teacher pay and conditions. I understand why some people do though as our concerns are not being listened to.
It's not double standards though as I doubt that those striking teachers have the authority to give you permission to go on holiday.

alistron said it better.

and....that's OK is it? because they're teachers? (I understand about the need to strike etc etc) but in the context of this discussion its do as I say not as I do. and whilst we're on the subject why aren't training days held during the holidays.
yet again, parents in the wrong when taking time out, but shoe on the other foot and its the 'yes but we are so much busier/more professional /more invested in your child's education/put upon by the govt than you...' excuse. delete or insert as appropriate.

Training days are over and above the statutory school days the school just chooses when they occur.
My school never has them in the middle of the term. They are extra staff days at either the end or beginning of term.

As has been stated, it's not teachers who make the call about term time holidays. And maybe if their industrial actions are successful it will lead to a more equitable, fairer and better educational culture for all stakeholders. Including parents who want to take their kids on term time holidays.

Also, it's not do as I say. Those teachers aren't the ones saying no term time holidays!

I think the point was the government set the rules for holiday taking, not the teachers, so it's not double standards, its actually protesting about the same institution.

I don't know why training days aren't held in the holidays. Would you like to do staff training in the middle of your holiday?

Where did you teach? You are not happy about the job at all, are you?!

The fine system exists to try and dissuade families from taking term-time holidays. Because education comes first. If you take the attitude that you can live with the fine to save a few bob, you obviously aren't doing that for your kids.

but it is. teachers can't bow out of the school culture just because they don't make the decisions, as apparently neither can parents according to posters on here for the same reasons. logical arguments people!

Your dd has missed out on a fun class activity to help someone who has been on holiday catch up? Really? And you didn't complain about this?

owlina yes I would if I had 13 weeks to choose from.

I got out of teaching because of all the box ticking crap. don't agree with schools 'parenting ' children and parents (there are some who need it but other agencies to deal, a whole other thread) I also feel the target culture is hugely damaging to chn and teachers alike.

and its OK to be angry and annoyed about something. honestly it is.

I don't like being parented by the state. I have had enough.

Teachers are employees. So they have employee rights, like sick pay and the right to be in a union.

The teachers have to abide by the government's guidelines in many things i presume. I'm not the one who would make judgements on holiday leave in my school so i can't honestly say i know all the ins and outs of the decision making process.

The way i see it is that teachers and parents are on the same side - wanting the best for the child in terms of education and life chances. I have stated how that relates to term time holidays, i'm not typing it all out again!!

Sitting above this is government legislation. That is LAW. Schools have to follow the law in many things. holiday leave is one of these. So is safeguarding children and this is one of the things we have annual staff training on. First aid is another. We have to do this, and we want to do this in order to provide the best possible school experience for the children. We don't all have to agree with every proposal, hence strikes, but we do have to follow the law.