To unenrol my child to take them on holiday?

[NameChange547]

DC attends an undersubscribed, small village school. There are 17 children in the class, and they can take up to 30, so I’m not concerned about us losing our place. Is there anything legally to stop me unenroling my child from school, ‘home educating’ them for two weeks on holiday, and then re-enrolling them back in school, to avoid being fined?

DC is high achieving and I’m not concerned about the academic impact. They appear to spend a fair amount of the school day relearning things they already know like phonics (DC can read fluently).

Probably not. As with the many posts on here where people think buying a property in a catchment area will fool school access panels, there are a lot of parents who believe they're the first geniuses to think of something and that schools and council workers are dumb thickos who won't see through it. Thankfully, these people mostly get what they deserve.

Maybe I’ve misunderstood. I didn’t think the OP was proposing actually trying to fool the school - more that it avoids unauthorised absence.

It might take a month to re enroll him, as it all goes though the council. I wouldn't bother. Just pay the fine.

You might also trigger a safeguarding concern as they would be questioning your motives

Let it slide how? Unless there is an attendance order in place they can’t do anything about it.

They could be slow re admitting them, but a school with 16 kids per year is unlikely to turn down the kid altogether.

The LA wouldn’t be in love with it, but unless it’s a repeated thing realistically they won’t do anything.

Really silly and a waste of school staff and local authority time.

This

Agree

How old is DC? Where I am they only care after child turns 5, as before then school isn't compulsory

Just get it authorised and deal with the fine, if they even give you one. I take mine out for a week most years and have never been fined(I'm in Wales though). Even if they started giving fines, it's still massively cheaper than the ridicuous school holiday prices.

It won’t be authorised anyway I don’t think. That’s what I thought was being proposed - not that the OP was exactly lying to the school, more a technicality if you like.

Pretty sure that if you deregister the school is not obliged to reallocate you a place when you change your mind, it's up to the LEA. So you may find you're given a place elsewhere - you know, at a school you haven't just removed your child from.

Just pay the fine!

Your poor kid. Most schools would have some kind of a goodbye celebration for a kid leaving. i think this would be confusing and humiliating for them.

No they are removed immediately if HE.

I wonder if LAs differ in policy. My child started a week after contacting the school and finding they had a place, could have started sooner but we'd just arrived that day so needed some time. The school asked when we wanted them to start. My sibling contacted the school and wrap around to check for spaces before their child started the following week.

Yes very unreasonable. Are you always so entitled

In our area you would have to apply via the local council and it takes them 3-4 weeks to process an application through to us at school. Also we can’t take them off roll until either 21 school days have passed, we have confirmation of starting from a new school or confirmation of acceptance of home ed from the council education dept.

You’re being ridiculous. If it’s that important for you to go on holiday in term time just pay the fine. The school will need to fill in masses of paperwork - EHE requires a referral to the LA, who then have to send staff to check the quality of the education , plus all the admin taking the child off the school roll and , when you come back (which could take a few weeks to process ), putting you back on. Also, if your child’s not on school roll on census day they won’t get funding for them for the year.

And just because you think your child is high achieving doesn’t mean they can miss two weeks of high quality education and socialising with their peers. Regular routines are incredibly important - as are parents actions showing their children that school and education is important.

@NameChange547 this is one of the reasons why behaviour of kids at secondary is so poor, because parents take them out of school at primary. You are teaching them not to value or respect education but hey whatever, the rules shouldn't apply to your special DC should they?!

If it's your job you should re up on the law! A parent does not need to inform the LA and every English LA has to remove that day.

A school can't delay off-rolling for the purpose of EHE unless there is safeguarding concerns or an EHCP. They can suggest it, but if a parent declares they are taking a child off-roll in order to EHE, that's immediate.

The council can’t ’not accept’ a child being removed for EHE unless the child has an EHCP and goes to special school, or there has been an attendance order put in place by the courts.

Its fine to point out this is a problematic plan, but there’s no need to spread misinformation.

I do know two separate families who do this but not for two weeks, generally for half a term as one goes in May to their home country for 3 months for the kids to see family and embed the language. The other for an extended holiday essentially but for 6-8 weeks not 2.

They can’t do it even if there are safeguarding concerns, unless there is an order in place. I’ve known several kids with heavy social services involvement who have been de rolled.

Where are you? Because this certainly isn’t the case here.

@AStrangeStateofMatter
I'm aware an order would have to be in place, I filed that under concerns for the purpose of general understanding. And 'let it slide' refers to the school not wanting to be associated with an illegal off-rolling. I've worked with EHE children, been SLT in a school and helped gather evidence against schools for off-rolling. I'm also aware that SOME advocates of EHE are extraordinarily zealous, paranoid and like to play barrack room lawyer whenever the subject comes up - if that's you, please don't continue this on my behalf.