Hi all.. long time reader.
I booked a family holiday 2 years ago for Easter 2024 and again for this year. We did it 'in bulk' as dad was diagnosed with a terminal illness and we were in the panicked 'making plans and memories phase' .
Anyway I used the term time & holiday dates available on the local authorities website at the time. I got it right for 2024. For 2025 it was a bit of guesswork. I checked a few times early last year and all was good but I have nt checked since before Sept 2024. Yes I know I should have.
Anyway turns out I'm out by a week. So my year 8 child will be away 1 week of Easter and will then miss 5 days. I told the school immediately. I've apologised, offered to take away a laptop and email in homework and classwork. Initially the school said they would authorize the absence as it was a genuine mistake and parents booking long advanced holidays get caught out a lot. They have since changed their mind and it will now not be authorised.
That's ok, I was nt expecting them too. I made an error not checking to see if term dates had changed closer to the time. However we will be going. Dad won't be around next year and although I'm usually a stickler for rules, this time family holiday wins. I can't change dates anyway and won't get any money back either.
I've asked the school and the local authority what will happen next. I'm willing to pay fines etc if that's what the procedure is. But I've had zero response and it's now been 2 weeks and it's causing me a lot of stress. Can anyone in Hampshire tell me what the next steps are? I'm starting to freak out about court dates and prison... We have never done this before. My child's attendance is 95% since August last year (spent 3 days in hospital in October). It's usually above 97%>
Thank you for any input.