Honouring a pre-booked holiday

[Outoutoutshout]

I'm currently not working in a school but potentially may start teaching again in the spring. I'd like to book a holiday but would a school honour a pre booked holiday if it falls in term time? It's a lot cheaper to book out of school hols and as I'm currently not teaching and not 100% sure I will be in the spring it makes sense to book outside of school hols. However, I'm concerned how a school will feel about this if I do start teaching again in the spring. Will they be hugely annoyed and will they honour the holiday?

Actually I've just thought that as it would be unpaid presumably then it wouldn't be cheaper.

You could request unpaid leave for the prearranged holiday. It would be up to headteacher/ governor discretion as to if it would be approved

I think it's quite unlikely just for a holiday. Maybe for a family wedding or something.

I think you need to decide whether you are going back into school and if so, book for school holidays.

I think it would massively depend on when the holiday was and for how long as to whether this would even be considered. First three weeks of term? Absolutely not! Just before the October half term and it’ll only be a couple of days? You might have a fighting chance.

Realistically though, I wouldn’t do this if I was about to apply for school jobs. We only have 195 directed days a year so choose some of the other 170 days or don’t apply to work in a school until after the holiday.

No teachers are not permitted to holiday during term time, that’s an absolute given, can you imagine how it would look in your school community? One rule for the families and another for staff? Parents get fined for holidaying when children should be at school.

This document is the government’s: assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1022624/School_teachers__pay_and_conditions_document_2021_and_guidance_on_school_teachers__pay_and_conditions.pdf
and your school will have a staff leave of absence policy.

if you know you’re going back into the workforce on a contract in a school don’t book a holiday.

That's the problem. I don't know if I will be back in school. It depends on redundancy which I won't hear about for months yet.
However, I will book it in school hols to be on the safe side.

I think booking it for the holidays would be the right decision.