School fine

[greenose]

My asd dd was going though pretty horrific time a few months back, really suffering mentally and self harming.
her councillor suggested me and her get away for a few days to try and reconnect as a family and pick her up a bit. I explained all this to the school and let them know she would be off For five days as we were going to New York. I picked New York as I knew she’s always wanted to go and see all the sights.
I’ve now received a fine in the post, I’ve never been fined before as I’ve never taken her out of school for a holiday, I know other parents in the school have taken children out for beach holidays and not been given a fine.
i can afford pay it but I’m thinking I shouldn’t really have too given the circumstances . She really needed this for her mental health and did pick up once we were there.

Question is, can you be bothered to expend the time and energy to fight it, and possibly lose which will cause more stress… I think I would suck it up in your case and see it as money well spent supporting your DD… it might not feel fair but that’s the crappy system we currently have

Just pay it and move on. Not worth the energy.

The fines are dependant on the number of half days missed not the destination. Sometimes parents will get a fine but they won’t tell everyone, why would they?

The fines are just something that happens now and whilst I don’t agree with them, I do think that as we have them, the fines need to be for all holidays. I think it would be even more unfair if some people were fined and others were not,

Counsellor probably expected you to go away for a weekend or wait for school holidays. You can't appeal the fine unless they have made a mistake

You should not have been fined for this. That’s grossly unfair. I don’t agree with fines at all, but this was not just a jolly, and should be an exception. I would be fuming, but as PPs have said, I would probably just pay it, because the stress of not on top of everything you are dealing with would be too much. Very very unfair though. What a horrible unfeeling, uncompassionate place our country has become. I’m sorry you are having to deal with this.

Loads of things aren’t jollies though. Funerals in other countries, going to see a grandparent for the last time before they die, being unable to get to school because your family have been evicted. The parents of a child in my class were fined because they took their child out to go to a grandparents hospital bed after a car accident abroad.

It’s a terrible system but it was more terrible when the heads were using their discretion because it caused resentment and there was favouritism.

Nice middle class holiday to Egypt ✅
Four days in Blackpool ❎

Now everyone is fined!

I agree, i do support fined for reasons that are unauthorised. Right now even for authorised absences, an LA might still fine a family even though a school authorised the reason (funeral etc). I think it should be changed to only fine for unauthorised absences instead. Schools nowadays (unless maybe private, but that's not under DfE), have more fair and inclusive policies that are no longer abelist (some do and I'd want that all reformed before we changed the system) which recognise funerals, illness, chronic illness and disabilities, extenuating circumstances and SEN and mental illness (however this is delicate, part-time timetables, pastoral support, so attendance for this, needs long-term slow support to get to a decent level which is sustainable and not harmful to the pupil). Other than that though, I support fines for silly reasons (happen more than we think) and unauthorised absences (only once schools policies on what to authorise changes and is more fair).

It’s quite clear now though with schools whether we like it or not. Take your child out during term time and you’re fined. The fact that you don’t agree for your own personal reasons doesn’t come into it I’m afraid.