To think the penalties for term time absence is ridiculous..

[JKbowling]

I got this in my email inbox today, sent to all parents and guardians.

"Failure to safeguard a child's education" appearing on your DBS, really?

As for term time holidays. If a family can't afford to pay for their one measly UK break per year to be had during the 6 weeks holidays (because the prices are hiked right up and become unaffordable) how does school suppose said family is going to pay the fine?

If you can afford to take your kid on holiday then you can afford the fine. Parents taking their kids on holiday in term time aren’t taking them camping in Norfolk.

Let's just get this straight.
It's not the schools. If you don't like it (and I think it's ott as a teacher) write to your MP.

Prices are discounted outside of school holidays, rather than hiked during them. I think that the majority of people who take a term time holiday, do so because it’s abroad and the cost of the fine is less than the difference between the cost of the holiday in term time, as opposed to school holiday time.

I think that most people will still choose to take the fine and go on holiday.

450,000 kids were absent from school the last week of the summer term. You don't think that's a problem?

No, I can't.

Our annual short break is funded by an organisation that supports families with disabled or seriously ill children.

If going during the holidays was affordable for us or them then we wouldn't need to go during term time.

Context is relevant.

Absent from school because they / the parents couldn't be arsed to go / take them.. is a problem.

Absent because of a holiday which every child should be able to have isn't a problem, in my opinion.

My kids never did anything useful in the last week of summer term anyway. Particularly at primary school, where they were sat in front of films they’d seen before at the cinema.

Have teachers suddenly started providing lessons all the way through?

My classes certainly aren't sat in front of films the whole week.

But if you just decide that you can doss off school whenever you feel like it isn't going to be useful, then there's no surprise that loads of kids now think that they can too.

Absent because of a holiday which every child should be able to have isn't a problem, in my opinion.

Parents in other countries are desperate for their kids to have an education. Parents in this one seem to be desperate to get their kids out of it.

That is both irrelevant and complete hyperbole.

I am uncomfortable removing the right for a head teacher to authorise a leave of absence in exceptional circumstances.

I have family abroad. If I was suddenly needed attend to them because of an accident, medical event or death in the family during term time and there was no one else to watch my children so they had to come with me, this could result in criminal action which could compromise my career (true though only on the third occurrence).

I feel like this rule is not going to just be applied to the holiday makers but also people trying to support a wider family network or dealing with chronic illnesses and it is going to backfire somewhere and cause lots of hurt.

Taking a single week out of school to go on holiday isn't a problem. Our local school in Wales, allows this. It's a different issue to persistent absence.

It absolutely isn't. Fucksake, you think education is so irrelevant that kids should have the right to get out of it.

There is a reasonable amount of wiggle room to avoid fines. Make sure they’re only absent for 8/9 sessions and you’re still pretty much getting a week holiday. I bet the figures for that last week include people taking one or two days as well as people off the full week. Our term was ridiculous as it finished at 1pm on a Tuesday. Literally nothing of any value happened on the Monday or Tuesday, the classrooms had been emptied the Friday before and lots of families went away the weekend before. Can’t say I blame them really although not convinced it would have been that much cheaper.

I don't think everyone is entitled to a holiday. We can't afford to go so we don't go and our child isn't even in school yet. Disagree that education should be jeopardised to go abroad.

Why not have longer school holidays like the private schools do? Then provide free holiday clubs for a couple of weeks which are optional.

Oh give over will you.

One holiday per year is not going to make a slight difference to the child's education unless at key points IE exams, and I don't know anybody who would prioritise a holiday above exams.

Parents in other countries are desperate for their kids to have an education. Parents in this one seem to be desperate to get their kids out of it.

You mean SOME parents in other countries are desperate for their kids to have an education.

And SOME parents in this one seem to be desperate to get their kids out of it.

Let's keep it sensible.

It’s the repeated use of the word “offence” on that notice that makes me wince; they’re trying to making parents feel like hardened criminals for taking their kids to Mallorca in September!

Ultimately, you have a legal responsibility to make sure your child receives an education. You do not have a legal responsibility to go on holiday. You make a choice, and you deal with the consequences.

Schools do have capacity to permit in exceptional circumstances -
My daughter was being a flower girl for my husbands cousin abroad, wedding had to be brought forward from the summer holidays to termtime as brides Dad was told he had only a few weeks to live. We would have gone anyway even if not permitted and paid the fine without complaint, as in our opinion it was too important for is to miss, but it was our choice.

If your child's teachers just decided to not show up for a couple of weeks, and your child couldn't attend school, I'm sure many would be complaining.

I view my son's attendance at school the same way as I view my attendance at work. By signing my son up to school, I've agreed to follow their rules, the same way I did when I signed my work contract.

If I took a week off work for a holiday, without permission, or after permission was denied, I'd be suitably reprimanded. I don't see any problem with the local authority also carrying out sanctions.

Term time holidays are incredibly disruptive to the whole class. One child being off for a week means an entire week of lost learning, and the teacher or TA having to then dedicate time to that child to catch them up, taking time away from the rest of the class. Multiply that by a class of 30 and it's chaotic. Then inevitably children will be ill throughout the year, so their attendance dips lower.

I totally understand financial pressures on families right now. We're facing the same, but if I decide to take a holiday during term time, then I will face the fact that I'll need to pay a fine.

I also totally understand the pressure on teachers. One family can only see as far as their one child's absence and their entitlement to a holiday, but a teacher sees that multiple times a year and has to then bring those children up to speed. It's tough.

The education system clearly needs an overhaul and has for years. Maybe the government and LEAs should start by trying to prevent teachers leaving in droves, fund our children’s schools better, deal with the other issues that are causing concern, before they wage war on parents who take their kids on holiday in term time. Maybe.

For full disclosure, I haven’t taken my kids out of school for a holiday in about 10 years. But I don’t agree with this policy.

“Have teachers suddenly started providing lessons all the way through?”

We took DD2 (who had 98% attendance) out of primary school for the last week of term when she was in Year 3, and received a fine. I asked to see the lesson plans for the week so I was aware of what she’d missed.

I’m still waiting - DD2 is now 26!

This. Save up and have one holiday every 3 years in holiday time rather than one per year. Or don’t have kids if holidays are that important.

Probably the most sensible poster on the thread.