To ask for a term time holiday for DS with autism?

[Plushypumpkin]

Do schools/councils take into consideration the reason for taking a term time holiday or will it just be a blanket no?

I have never taken DS out of school and he has a near-perfect attendance record ( he is in year 4). However, this year he is finding busy situations increasingly difficult.

Are children with autism taken into consideration for term time holidays?

You can't afford the fine but you can the holiday?

Can’t afford the fine plus holiday I assumed she meant.

It's not up to the school or the headteacher. That's a very common misconception this idea of schools being difficult. The school is instructed by the Borough which is in turn instructed by the DfE. The DfE make the rules and the rule is that schools cannot authorise holiday during term time.

There are some really nasty unkind replies here! Go for it OP, do what is right for your family.

I don't know if my son's term-time holidays are authorised or not, I never look at his attendance codes! But he is at a SN school and, with his level of learning disability, missing formal education will have little impact - so long as we keep up his holistic learning while away (things like sitting and eating at a table, behaving appropriately in public). We don't write to the school to ask permission, we write and tell them that we are going, why, and what we will do. School have now received the same letter, copy and paste, for eight years in a row 😂

@ClocksGoingBackwards

If you want to take your child out of school for a cheap holiday then do it, but don’t try and use your child’s autism as an excuse. It will be unauthorised as it should be.

The vast majority who are parents to disabled children are not seeing the child's disability as an excuse for a fucking term time holiday.

"If you want to take your child out of school for a cheap holiday then do it, but don’t try and use your child’s autism as an excuse. It will be unauthorised as it should be."

I have had a term time holiday authorised

I expect you are also the type of person who would get annoyed about a child with a disability getting upset around your child because they are overwhelmed.

I think all you can do is ask? DS' primary school (in Wales) has recently written to all parents to say as an incentive to boost attendance if children get above a certain % attendance then families can request up to 5 days in term time for holiday purposes without penalty.

@ClocksGoingBackwards

Bore off, you utter knob.

We are in Scotland we don't get fined anyway regardless of any your going away but it's never been an issue to take our Sen children out of school during term time. One attends a ASN school another mainstream both schools always wish us a good holiday and it's always been down as an authorised absence.

My autistic DC loves rural breaks in woodland cabins. Lots of nature to explore, no people around. It’s great.

Worth looking at the type of break you take, should you not get your request granted.

Yes Iheart- and?

Our primary school forwards all absences onto bed fined. I think its 10 sessions hence usinly taking 4 days off.

I was surprised I didn't get the request but I think a lot of schools are refusing everybody. There appears to be some leeway with fines but ours has been up front for years that they send all details on for fines.

Very much depends on the Headteacher. We are blessed with one who puts common sense first. She let us take a week in term-time to avoid school holiday crushes. It would have been meltdown city if I'd tried to take him anywhere in peak season...

Wow, what an unpleasant creature you are.

OP pay no attention to ignorant trolls with zero understanding of ASD. Do what is best for your DC and your family.

It was for us.

When my ds was still in an ARP unit we had our holiday authorised for this reason.

However, if it hadn't been it wouldn't have stopped me.