Should the Deputy Head have been allowed to do this?

[SandwhichGenerationGal]

DD has four year old twins. They attend nursery school 09.00-3.15.
Twin 1 was sent home early with a temperature. DD kept her off the next day and she developed diarrhoea. I was visiting but needed to leave at 2pm to go to work (I am a nurse). Suggested she call school and ask to collect twin 2 at 2pm so I could stay at home with twin 1 and new baby (I don’t drive and school half hour walk). DD rang school (gave reasons for wanting to collect early) and was told deputy head would need to give permission and would call back. She didn’t call so DD phoned again and was told she was in a meeting. DD then drove to the school and asked to collect twin 2. Was informed deputy head had refused permission. Suggested their dad could collect her at the normal time or she could go to after school club, (has never been before and doesn’t even know what it is). DD said neither option was acceptable. DSIL is a doctor and can’t just leave at a moments notice (of course he would if it was emergency) and twin 2 was unprepared for attending after school club for the first time). Deputy head refused point blank and DD had to come home. I ended up staying and was late for work.
When did schools become so obsessed with their attendance stats that they take priority over the child’s health and well being?
They are four FFS and not even legally required to be in school.
Was the deputy head within her rights to refuse this or is she just a power mad controlling jobsworth? DD didn’t even get into the school, it was all done over the intercom. I am livid.

It’s nursery class so not even proper school. If I was your dd I would have stood my ground and demanded my child.

I work in a school nursery, and funnily enough we have twins in our class, we would have done whatever worked best for the parent.

Unbelievable. I assume you will write a letter of complaint to the head teacher and whoever else needs to know?

Blarting
In fairness to the deputy head missing an hour and 15 mins of school can cause serious problems with future university applications.
What a jobsworth!

Absolutely. Had one of the twins missed an hour and 15 minutes of school at age 4, it will obviously make the difference between becoming a brain surgeon and flipping burgers in McDonalds 😀

The school’s behaviour was unreasonable. The most that can be said is that it might cause a very small disruptions.

Also, as other posters have said, the child does not even legally have to be there:

www.theschoolrun.com/school-starting-age-and-deferred-entry-explained-parents

Taking your Reception child on holiday

Parents often like to make the most of their child’s Reception year to take a term-time holiday before the academic pressure intensifies, but schools often discourage this. However, legally speaking, it’s not unlawful for you to take your child out of school for a holiday before they reach Compulsory School Age. The school is obliged to mark your child as present or absent, but don’t have to record whether their absence is authorised. This means that schools are not allowed to refuse the leave, mark it as unauthorised or fine you for taking them out of school – although they might still encourage you to follow the school’s usual procedures and write a letter or fill in a form to explain your child’s absence.

MarJau26 - how is a parent supposed to pick a child up when the sibling is ill? How?

This makes no sense. The child would already have had their PM session mark on the register so a 2pm pick-up would have had no impact on the attendance figures for the day.

This. A four year old is not required to be in school.

Does your DD have PR?

I’m angry on your behalf - no common sense from Dep Head!

in kindest possible way, suggest your DD learns to be more assertive in future

Crazy. My school would have had no problem with twin 2 leaving unless it is a regular occurrence.

Ridiculous. Kids in nursery don't even have to be there and by 2pm they are already counted as the register has already been done for the afternoon. No reason not to allow it. Horrible jobsworth deputy.

In answer to your question no they can't do that. Your DD has every right to collect her child from school early. The school can make it difficult but why they would for a 4 year old is beyond me.
I work in a secondary school and although it's frowned upon we let children out for similar reasons mostly on Friday at 2.30pm!

NUrsery?!? They're 4?!?!

I would not have left without my child. Police would have been called had they not handed over my child.

Well that would have been easily fixed with an appointment - doctors dentist opticians - whoops got cancelled!

you’ll know for next time.

They can't refuse surely. I would have just gone in and said I'm taking her and not ask.

School/nursery sound idiotic.

This is insane? I frequently pick my daughter up from school nursery early if I can get away from work! I cannot fathom being told I wasn't allowed to collect my child and calmly walking away?

I agree that Op's GC doesn't have to be there, but surely once you accept the place you are agreeing to send your child in for certain hours?

That's not to say that I think the DH was right in this case though.

How utterly inflexible.

Hes below the age of compulsory education. Parents can take him out/ not send him in whenever they want.

Whilst I disagree with the Deputy Head and think they should have released the child, this post is wrong. The school can refuse to allow you to take your own child home. Whilst I don't think they have acted reasonably, they have acted legally.

Well, it’s illegal to hold a child hostage , so she could have insisted on collecting her own child from school, given that she has parental responsibility. The school may not agree, but all it is entitled to do is record something like this as an unauthorised absence, if registers have not already been taken, it is not allowed to refuse a parent permission to take their own child home, provided that person is known by the school and known to have parental responsibility.

Jobsworth! If I ever pick up one child from school sick and there's only an hour or so to go I ask for the other one too, and their school have never had a problem with that - they are 12 and 8

My school would allow this ....intact we've asked a parent when collecting a sick child if they would like to take sibling home too to make it easier .....!!!

my school wouldnt let a student just leave early unless they were actually ill , or they had a medical or dental appointment ,
dd was having a wobble because of an incident and wanted me to come and get her to go home and school said no , lets face it for all we know schools might get loads of these calls wanting kids to leave early so they have a blanket policey in place

Sorry, actually not strictly true, but where the parent has a good reason, as given, it is frankly overstretching authority to refuse to release a four year old, unless there are safeguarding concerns relating to the child.

Ridiculous. Child isn't even statutory school age. And what would she have done if DD insisted? Imprison the other twin?!
Some teachers have no clue, and I say that as a Headteacher.