Unauthorised absence for chickenpox

[Mrsmj12]

Hey!

My 2 primary aged chicken were off school the week before (May) half term.

I contacted the GP for an appointment as I suspected they had chickenpox on the Friday (DD1 had spots on Thursday, and DD2 Friday). GP booked a telephone appointment for both girls. ICT issues means both appointments got cancelled and were rescheduled for the following week.

On the following Monday I contacted the school and informed them of the chickenpox. They asked for photos of the girls spots (I sent it), proof of cancelled appointments (I sent it). I call each morning t confirm their absence.

The school are now threatening to not authorise their absence unless I have a discharge letter from urgent care! I never once said I took my children to urgent care, and who would for mild chickenpox?!
I did however tell them I could supply confirmation of diagnosis from the GP.

Where do I stand with this? Can the school ask for medical notes?

they did mention time off before or after school holidays raises suspicion, but I’ve proved everything that I possibly can to prove my girls had chickpox!

does anyone know what more I can do as I don’t want this to go to court, but will have to if there is no choice as I point blank refuse to pay a fine for sickness!

Just out of interest, did you go on holiday over half term at all? We would follow up a reported illness just before or just after a school holiday if we believed the child may have been on holiday - proof being things like child coming in with a tan when its been cold here, child telling their friends all about their holiday in Tenerife, school phoning parent and getting an international ring tone.

Email them back and say that you can't provide this but have provided all relevant proof.

Unfortunately it does look suspicious because both children were ill at the same time (often one child gets it then passes it to siblings later) just before half term. However I understand your frustration! Also if they had dealt with it at the time you could have proved it more easily. At that point you could have tried to get a doctors appt or invited them round to wave at the kids through the window! Not sure how you are meant to prove you didn't go on holiday or that they had CP now, when they are recovered.

Schools should absolute not be trying to get parents to take kids with chicken pox into gp surgeries full of vulnerable.

You need to challenge both this current situation and the December one. They sound ridiculous

And no, they cannot stipulate only a discharge from urgent care would satisfy the absence - for a start they aren’t medical so cannot dictate care expectations. They sound militant and also like they’ve not read your correspondence correctly