Would they let my children leave an hour early due to a weekend away?

[amy12464]

We have never done this before so I don’t want to bother ringing and asking if it’s totally the wrong thing to do. We’re going away to London tomorrow straight after school as we’re visiting family friends Saturday morning for an event. Thing is 3pm is peak traffic time and it’s going to be 4 plus hours if we leave then. I wanted to ask their teachers if they could let our children leave 1-1.5 hours early . Would they consider it? Has anyone done this in the uk specifically in a primary school. My children are under 8

@ThisZanyPinkSquid And then when your children copy you and start lying, what do you do?

Presumably you're not planning to do it every Friday, so if as a one off it ends up as an unauthorised absence what does it really matter?

It's not going on their CV.

Do you mean one of your kids has a medical appointment and you’ll need to pick up other kid(s) at same time as won’t be able to make it back in time for pick up ;)))

Just say you’ll be picking them up and 2pm as you have a personal appointment and need to take the children with you.

it will go down as unauthorised, whether you ask nicely or just tell them.

School won’t care as they will have already been marked in as present so it won’t impact their attendance figures.

Just be honest especially if it is a one off.

Was 12.45 in ours

Missing the point completely here, but I can't believe how strict the rules are in England about this.
Here in Canada, my kids had to miss 5 days of school because we flew to a family wedding in Scotland. Principals of both schools said something along the lines of "what a great experience for them, have a great time." Both have good attendance records otherwise.
It's not uncommon here for kids to miss a Friday fairly frequently for dance or cheerleading competitions or hockey tournaments, not affiliated with the school at all, and it's all viewed as good life experience.
Never had to provide proof of a dentist appointment or anything.

Just call in the morning , say something's come up and you need to pick them up early.

We tell the truth when going Cornwall for the weekend. School don't mind. Obviously don't do it every month we do it once twice a year.

That's wrong for a start. Our Primary 1- 3s finish at 1450, so pm Registration is much earlier than that.

🤣 wonder if it was the son of the mum I heard in the airport yesterday lying her head off to the school, claiming they flew home the day before but he'd been sick.

Just tell the truth. There is literally no reason to lie. None at all. In these circumstances there will be no unauthorised absence. It is pointless to lie.

If they're "your children and you make the decision", why do you have to make up a lie about them having an appointment?

Well yes. Obviously it's not the same time in every school in the entire country. This isn't France.

I probably shouldn't say this as I work in a primary school.... The government think differently. This is not the sort of attendance problem schools are worried about. I suspect the same for high schools. School staff aren't the issue here is the LA but they won't know if you don't tell them.....

She doesn’t need to tell the children. It avoids the fine.

There will never be a fine for picking your kids up an hour early from school on a Friday once or twice a year.

Don't ask. Just politely inform the school that you'll be collecting early that day, or say they have the dentist. They can't say no anyway. It's school not prison, plus they'll have registered for the afternoon anyway so it won't impact attendance figures.

"Appointment" is vague and covers a multitude of things. The trick to them not letting the cat out of the bag is not to tell them in advance. And then, when you collect them, say you have an "appointment" on the M3 or wherever you're heading 😂.

Pretty sure this poster was being sarcastic because the original question was a bit silly.

It’s because there is a very clear correlation between attendance and achievement. Numerous studies and data show it and it’s pretty dramatic.

The nuance is that a nice middle-class child leaving early for a holiday is totally different to a child with uninterested parents who don’t prioritise education. But rather than having each school make those decisions case-by-case, the government chose a blanket policy of enforcement for everyone. Same rule for all.

Some agree, some don’t but it’s not an unreasonable position.

Our school definitely would care. We’re always being sent letters saying do not ask to leave early.

I envy you in England we are treated like children who need to be told what to and kept on a tight leash.

Scotland’s educational outcomes are significantly worse than England so I wouldn’t hold it up as a shining example of how to run schools.

We've just done exactly the same thing, and just let the school know. They replied with "yes, no problem. Hope you have a lovely weekend" It wasn't a big deal with our primary.