Regularly missing school for holidays?

[loverofhol]

Parents, I’d love to hear some real-life experiences.
Our daughter is about to start at a private school, and I’m curious what actually happens in practice if children occasionally miss school for family travel. For example, if you give the school plenty of notice and take a week away in June and perhaps another week at a different point in the year.
I’m not talking about illness here – obviously children get sick from time to time. I’m specifically asking about family holidays and travel.
How do schools tend to react? Has anyone experienced warnings, fines, pushback from the school, or any other consequences?

I don’t really want to pretend a child is ill when they aren’t. Firstly, children have a habit of returning to school and enthusiastically telling everyone about their wonderful trip to Italy while they were supposedly “off with a stomach bug” 😅. Secondly, I don’t love the idea of teaching children to lie about these things.

I’d be really interested to hear from parents whose children attend private schools and who occasionally take them out of school for travel. What has your experience been in practice?

Surely your DCs are going to want to start seeing friends and going to activities during the summer soon? My DD is in year 1 and she would be so upset to kiss out on the organised play dates, parties and her activity summer training and workshop days. She didn’t care about it so kick last year but this year she is definitely aware of these things and wanting to join in.

This????
you already pay a small fortune for shorter term dates anyway they break up mega early anyway - surely just look at the term dates and organise “family travel” round the dates?

My experience of 2 private schools is that it isn’t well received and neither is it common. They won’t fine you but you might get a very stroppy letter (I did) and a refusal to provide work or to spend time helping your child catch up. Completely understandable. Why should your holiday create more work for the teachers?

I’m assuming this is a wind up? You spend 17ish weeks of the year “away” (not holidays - visiting family, which most would call a holiday if overseas) and you’re then wanting to take more (or your first and only “holiday”) during term time…twice?! This seems extreme!!

Our two schools would really object. They don’t take kindly to taking the last day of term off and are very open about that. Just take your holidays in the holidays!

I know of one family who has taken a few extra days but it's really not common at our prep. The Head sends a regular letter which reminds parents holidays must not be taken during term times and they do say poor attendance could result in the School making a request to the Local Authority for a Penalty Notice. So I assumed that meant we could be fined? I just don't think most private school parents really want to take their kids out of school. We value education and pay a fortune for it. I would sooner forgo a holiday. Summer term is so short and jam packed, as others have said, it's not a great time to miss school. Easter is approx 4 weeks off, October you have 2 weeks off, 4 weeks at Christmas, 8/9 at Summer, then you have other half terms too. I really don't see a need to schedule holidays outside of the time we already have off.

If you really want to do it, and it will be regular, I would speak to the specific school and ask before joining, as I imagine schools will differ in how they feel about it, and maybe they will give you their blessing if you're upfront about it before joining. I imagine it would be very inconvenient for the teachers and class though and your child might not be given main roles in concerts/drama etc, if they wont be there for the main performances etc, which seems a shame.

The senior school my DS is joining in Sept says please do not request holidays during term time. I remember my school taking a very dim view when I missed the first week of term in January because we were in Florida. I believe kids should be in school unless there is a very good reason for them not to be. You could easily go to Greece, Italy, Spain in May half term.

What are the 3-4 week Christmas and Easter holidays and the 2 week half-term breaks taken up with, which are not holidays?

I can think of some things such as sports training camps and ballet residentials/Nutcracker/festivals, but none of this would be at reception-age.

If it’s simply about timing for good weather, I would just go further afield outside the British summer - Far East, Africa, South America, even the Canary Islands.

Easter and the half-terms are good times to go to the hotter parts of Europe.

In primary it was authorised and fine. I wouldn’t do it in secondary, certainly not after year 7/8.