Taking children out of school during term time

[mummywoowa]

Now I dont want to turn this into a big arguement, just some advice plse...

My dd's school will not authorise holiday anymore..

We have booked our holiday in term time as my dh could not get time off in sch hols due to work, due to being new there and holidays already taken up. So our original dates had to be changed.

Now we carefully tried to consider as much as we could and felt that the first 2 weeks of Sept would be best as would only need 7 days off sch.

Both our dd's will not move classes, SATS are not too close, and is only start of term so first week espeically will only be settling into routine and book naming (I could be wrong.... ) plus both dd's seem to be doing well at sch too.

To get this authorised, I am hoping dh will get a supporting letter from his manager confirming that he cant take the time off when sch needs him to but do you think this is enough??

There's a (controversial) secondary near us that genuinely has as one of its selection criteria 100% attendance in year 5 (above sibling criteria). So know of someone whose eldest dd goes there whilst younger one declined a place because she has cf. Another surreptitious method of not admitting certain 'kinds' of families. Oh yeah, or sick kids, too. Nice!

If the goverment cares so much for education amd working families they should abolish the 6 week holiday-it is far tooooooo long and the holidays are too expensive that time of year and lots of parents have to find childcare during this period also.

That is awful kitkar

If school holidays are moved to other dates the travel companies will increase the prices for those dates ...

mummywoowa: You do not need to justify yourself. This whole holiday broohahah is ridiculous. The government should be more flexible, not less - or at least tie authorising term time absences to overall levels of attendance/lateness so that holidayers don't get mixed in with truanters, which is really what the new legislation is meant to be tackling. The link between low achievement and absence has nothing to do with holidays and everything to do with families who don't value their children or education enough to get out of bed and make sure their child loves learning/does homework/actually goes to school regularly rather than play with an x-box/roam the streets.

My best friend at primary school (state, years ago) was hoiked out at age 9 so her parents could driver her to India. It took a year to get there and back. The school held the place open and the headmaster waved her off with a: "What a brilliant experience! Have fun!" How times have changed... (my bf is now award-winningly successful, by the way, so it does not seem to have educationally crippled her. I'd say the opposite).

My only caveat would be that if you take them out make sure that they are either ahead of what's expected of them before they leave (so they don't fall behind) or you take it upon yourself to make sure that they do not miss anything crucial/you cover broadly what they miss. (And you have tried to do this by asking when you should book your trip - it's not your fault that it seems you were wrongly informed). I do think it is unfair to put the burden of the child's absence on the class teacher. (And I don't mean asking the teacher to set and mark special work).

And presumably could challenge on grounds of discrimination, as only absent due to disability.

Kitkatgirl
REALLY? Can they do that? Surely that must break all sorts of inclusion rules?

They can and do get away with all sorts of things...making the other comps really cross.

What kind of exceptional circumstances would mean that you could take a holiday during term time?

Family funeral abroad? Not technically a jolly, but might necessitate you taking the kids with you for anything up to a week or more.

Our LA has just revised it's guidance to schools about fining parents for unauthorised absences due to "some potential legal difficulties" if fines are issued before the child has 10 days authorised absences in a school year. Worth actually checking the LA policy - ask for a copy of it - as it seems not all schools are telling parents the correct position and might actually be on dodgy legal ground!

I wonder if some of the people on here who are adamant their school authorises holidays have asked recently. Most have toughened their stance in the last year.

Definitely not what I would call a holiday! I think I might try a Vitamin D deficiency!

Good tip PandaNot

This what my LEA say but may not have been updated yet

Notices may, and usually will, be issued :-

(i) to a parent whose child is of compulsory school age and has 20 or moreunauthorised absences out of 120 school sessions (this is the equivalent of 10 school days in any 12 school week period)

(ii) where a parent takes their child on holiday during term time and has

• not informed the school

OR

• permission is refused by the school

OR

• the child does not return on the agreed date

www.telegraph.co.uk/education/9206979/Swift-and-certain-sanctions-needed-on-school-truancy.html

mummywoowa - it would be helpful if you could get a letter from your dh's employers then school could consider it exceptional circumstances. They are not supposed to have a blanket ban;that is against current DfE guidelines. they should consider each application on its merits.

As long as your school don't employ a fast track fine system then you shouldn't be fined. What usually happens is you get a warning letter telling you not to take any days off in the next 20 or you'll be fined. Some LAs send this to cover your holiday and can then fine immediately, others don't so as long as the child's attendance is up to scratch after the holiday a fine isn't issued.

BTW most schools prefer you to take holidays at the end of the school year, simply because if you take them at the beginning your child is immediately in 'persistent absence' status and on 'catch up' % wise for the rest of the year.

I guess those who can afford it can still take time out and pay the fine. Just have to factor the time into the trip.

(My son's school is generous with authorised absences and as a result people do not bunk off the rest of the time and are generally on time. It's amazing how knowing you have those five days if you need them takes the fight out of you).

factor the COST into the trip

They are not supposed to have a blanket ban;that is against current DfE guidelines. they should consider each application on its merits.

I know of several secondary schools with just such a blanket ban. They can do what they like, whether it's 'against guidance' or not!

Oh I do realise that Feenie but if that is written in the school policy then they need to be called on it.

By whom? It's not against any legislation, AFAIK.

It's interesting what wiggly's LEA says about fines being issued "if the school has refused permission" and, presumably you go anyway. That means you'd be better off not informing them at all then, or at the very least giving them so little notice there is no time for them to refuse.

The legislation states that 10 days may be granted in exceptional circumstances and as such the school should at least be seen to be considering the circumstances of each application.

It also says it's the school's decision - if that decision is to ban holidays, that's fine. Who would do anything about it? Ofsted didn't.