Private school and taking time out for holiday

[squishyegg]

Hello!

My son already had a week off in November due to my mums 60th (we went abroad).

He had work to take with him and he did it all.

We have a cancelled holiday from 2020 that was cancelled again last year.

It's June this year so he will be missing two weeks off school.

What can a private school do if they disagree? I know they can't fine us. I'd be taking his work with us again.

It's the only time this year we can take it as my partner works away a lot.

I'm not looking for anyone telling me it's wrong etc etc.

Thank you!

They can send you a stroppy letter, which they probably will, and they can refuse to help your child catch up on what they've missed or provide work. They may not be able to fine you but you can guarantee they won't be very happy about it.

In theory, they could ask you to remove him from the school, because they almost certainly have it in their rules that you may not take your child out for holidays. If you're asking for work to take with you then you're not even giving them the chance to turn a blind eye.

They're not going to do anything about the 1st week, but booking a holiday for 2 weeks in JUNE when you have 8 weeks of holiday a couple of weeks later is massively taking the piss and they could decide to clamp down.

Is it a competitive school? A laid back whatever goes kind of school might be chill about it, but a school that makes a BIG deal about results might just ask you to leave after three weeks of in term holidays in one year. Your child's year might make a difference too.

@squishyegg , as others have said you have broken a school rule that you signed up to when you signed the contract and they could remove the place. In reality it will be unauthorised leave on their absence record which are inspected by which ever inspectorate they use and they will need a paper trail to show the inspectors. You should also think about your dc, it's a lot of term time to miss at a fun time of the school year.

Independent schools still have a legal obligation to ensure attendance and can and likely will report you to the council for truancy.

Okay thank you; might look at changing it!

I'd say it depends enormously on the age of the child! Primary level, then discuss with the teacher(s) what will be missed and if there is any issue eg end of year tests/exams or plays or concerts. Secondary then I think the critical thing to check for that time of year is end of year exams.

In general I'd plan to discuss first, and book after agreement is made.

I took my children to Australia for 7 weeks over Christmas when it was my parents' 40th anniversary and dad's 70th birthday. They were reception and year 2 and neither school had any problem with the ~3 weeks of school time they missed. They did both miss nativity productions though; but it was a trip that had been pencilled in for 3 years at that point, since our previous trip.

How old is your child? Y1 or Y11 - makes a big difference.

Is your child top of the class? Do they struggle?

Does the school have a waiting list or are they desperate for students?

Remember that other parents have a view on this. A child who is often absent disrupts the class on return. If they need extra help, they are taking that help - which other parents have paid for- away from other students.

Most schools will include attendance data in references for future schools. And these schools will take these into account when allocating places. So if you are aiming for somewhere competitive this could swing the balance.

Most people will be sympathetic if the child has to be absent for a family tragedy etc. But most think it is breathtakingly rude to treat the school like a drop in activity centre which runs for the sole convenience of your family.

Why have you arranged to go away during term time? If your child’s school based education is a low priority for you, why not home school them?

We have done the odd day here and there and nobody raised an eyebrow, it’s not unusual at the DCs school
I wouldn’t do longer than a couple of days though and certainly not if it was Y 11 or near any exams

@Kilimanjaro97

How old is your child? Y1 or Y11 - makes a big difference.

Is your child top of the class? Do they struggle?

Does the school have a waiting list or are they desperate for students?

Remember that other parents have a view on this. A child who is often absent disrupts the class on return. If they need extra help, they are taking that help - which other parents have paid for- away from other students.

Most schools will include attendance data in references for future schools. And these schools will take these into account when allocating places. So if you are aiming for somewhere competitive this could swing the balance.

Most people will be sympathetic if the child has to be absent for a family tragedy etc. But most think it is breathtakingly rude to treat the school like a drop in activity centre which runs for the sole convenience of your family.

Why have you arranged to go away during term time? If your child’s school based education is a low priority for you, why not home school them?

Calm down. He's 6- I don't think two weeks was going to ruin his whole school future but what do I know?

I don't have a child in private school, but I have worked for several families, (as a nanny), who did. All of them took the children out of school in term time for holidays / trips abroad to see relatives etc. None of the schools involved were remotely concerned - they provided work and expected the kids to catch up quickly when they returned but that was it. This is in London btw, and at both primary and secondary level.

Yeah calm down @Kilimanjaro97 - how dare you talk about the impact on other kids of taking 3 weeks out of school

If he’s only 6, there won’t be an issue. But please write an email to the school and ask politely.
I get lots of ‘we’ve booked a holiday to X so dc will not be in on X date’. Rubs me up the wrong way as it’s not ‘asking’.
The holiday will be recorded and further requests may be turned down by the Head in the future.

Well you're paying for your kid to be in school, as long as you don't complain when he's behind....TBH if you can afford private you should have factored in holidays.

Ours wouldn't have an issue with it as long as it's not an exam year, at 6 they would be completely fine with a holiday in term time. When I first asked the headteachers comment was that education doesn't only happen in school.

3 weeks in one year

@Mistressiggi

3 weeks in one year

Yes...

@Clymene

Yeah calm down *@Kilimanjaro97* - how dare you talk about the impact on other kids of taking 3 weeks out of school

Hardly.

Oh you didn't want opinions.

Crack on then love. Let's hope they don't kick your kid out.

I am laughing at this thread. I am a school data manager - have been in both state and independent sectors. So pretty up on attendance legislation (because it is!) and school policies.

Your attitude - I'm not looking for anyone telling me it's wrong etc etc. - and he is only age 6. You are going to have a very rough time for the next few years if you continue with that cocky attitude.

The independent sector will get rid of children where there are issues - and parents not complying with the school contract, terms and conditions and the law - is quite a big issue. My last independent school introduced a 13 page parent contract - guess they got fed up of certain parents and this was the best way legally to deal with it. Other posters have quite rightly commented on the impact to other students. It would be a poor school that didn't look at all students' welfare.

As other posters have suggested - a polite email explaining COVID circumstances might get you a lot further in this single instance at this age.

If the postponed holiday is one that was originally before he started school (given that it was 2 years ago), and it isn't possible to switch to July/August instead, the school may have some sympathy.
They may also be sympathetic if your husband's work places a lot of restrictions (military can be difficult, I think).

But in general, taking your kid out for one week in the year is quite cheeky enough.

When our son was yr 1 the primary school closed for a week due to snow, then he had a week off due to chicken pox and then we took him out for a week of skiing.
He was top of his year in maths and English. It made no difference to him academically. I would say 3 weeks off a year for Term time holidays is but unless he is behind I can't imagine it will impact him.

My daughters school flogs expensive ski trips and even an African 'save to poor' trips and have numerous 'Inset' Days (Insect Days as we call them), so they are not that concerned with absence!

We regularly take our son out for sports competitions and internationals and we just send a polite email saying he wont be on on this certain date due to his British Team tournaments and they wish us good luck.

The Primary School told us we would have to pay a fine and I said if they even tried that nonsense I would come up the school and make my voice heard. We got a letter and I tore it up and send it back to them without a stamp. We never heard a whimper after that.

Remember, your children are yours not the property of the school or grasping Marxist Collectivists who think the community owns your product and can drag us al down with them. Call them out and make it uncomfortable every time they try this nonsense and arrange for others to join in. They are cowards hiding behind the Education Authority diktats and there is no reason for us to be moral cowards too...

@CatchUpKing INSET days were introduced by the Thatcher government in the late 1980s and teachers lost five days' holiday to accommodate them.

They are not days when your child misses out on education. If they had never been imposed, the school would have been shut and teachers on holiday
anyway.

HTH