Wtf is a child going to miss from a week off primary school? I wouldn’t even mind if the fine went directly to the school to help them but it wont.
I think these are not nuanced enough.
Taking an eight year old out for a week or a 15 year old has a different impact as they are at different leaning stages with more at stake.
I have taken my daughter out of school for a fanily wedding in France. I wouldnt for a holiday but I totally understand why people do.
Of course there is disruption for the teacher but explaining its impact on the class and learning would be better than a fine which people will build into their holiday cost.
School absence is absolutely through the roof and educational achievement for younger children is looking really quite dire. Parents should most definitely be held accountable, many are far too uncaring about their child’s education.
I’m a teacher and I think it needs to be more nuanced. Parents of children with 100% attendance (or close) should be cut some slack for wanting to avoid the extortionate fees during school holidays, especially if it’s at a particularly “dead” time in the school year (e.g. July).
I’m less sympathetic if the child has poor attendance.
>School absence fines have increased from £60 to £80
You save much more holidaying outside the school holidays. This won’t deter most people.
Love how the councils pretends this isn’t just a way to suck more money out of people. Guess my kid will just be sick for a week!
It’s no surprise home schooling rates are increasing with policies like these it’s more and more appealing. Quite shockingly as well is that absences during to bullying and mental health issues aren’t considered ‘unavoidable’ and can be fines which is quite horrid tbh.
Ridiculous. A child missing a week or two from school is hardly going to be affected for the rest of their life.
From £60 to £80. I don’t think an extra £20 is going to deter a family going on holiday when they can save £1500 to go during term time..
I can’t get an ENT apoointment for my kid so they’re constantly off with ear problems and their ongoing asthma.
If I could get help with this through the NHS then he’d be in school more.
I don’t want him off school, it upsets his learning, but now we’ve been told he has to be in unless he has a doctors note because he’s been off too much. So I now need to waste GPs time and appointment slots taking him to the doctor to be told he has a chronic ear infection, (again), which they can do nothing about, give us *yet another* referral to the ENT which we cannot get access to because of the queue for it, to then take a doctors note to school to avoid getting a fine for my child being ill.
This focus on attendance is kafkaesque and actively counterproductive.
When I was in year 6 I missed two weeks of primary school to go sailing around Australia over a month period in December (something I was insanely lucky to do and will probably never be able to do again).
My teacher told me I had to send emails to my class updating them on what I was doing and my classmates had to send me emails back. I also had to write a diary and draw pictures of marine life and hand it in when I returned. My teacher didn’t mark it, just flipped through and gave me a sticker for anything that caught her eye.
My parents were very involved with making sure I was doing all of this and I think perhaps this is where the catch should be. If parents agree to do something along these lines that help not only with cultural capital but continue their development of literacy, then they should be allowed time off for an extended time.
Unless school has changed since i was there many years ago, the last week of term you did fuck all anyway
I see no-one has addressed the elephant in the room.
What is the difference to a parent taking a child out for a week to go on holiday vs a child losing a week of education due to teachers going on strike?
Apart from the fact the council can raise some revenue from one whilst vilifying the parents?
Growing up in France my parents got the “zone” dates wrong (different regions have different holiday times in France) so we went on holiday for two weeks and when we came back it was the school holidays for two weeks haha. I was 14 at the time and it had no negative impact whatsoever
Taking kids on holiday is a good thing. It broadens their knowledge in a way that can’t be achieved in schools, it’s good for their motivation and it’s good for their development.
It’s far cheaper too during term time and is beneficial to everyone if you don’t effectively try forcing people to all go away during the same weeks in the year
A child is not going to suffer or fall behind because they go on holiday for 1 or 2 weeks.
Love how everyone says “it doesn’t matter if they miss a week” and yet will be raging if the teacher applied the same logic to go on holiday for a week in term time to save some cash instead of having to go in the school holidays.
“Here’s what you need to know”
Proceeds to tell me nothing I need to know.
Is it any unauthorised absence? A day? Two days? What about a week? Is it percentage based? What about sickness? What religious holidays not celebrated nationally (such as Sukkot).
Admittedly this did give some information but just nothing to aid me in making a decision. If my child is over performing academically and attendance is great I don’t see why I shouldn’t be able to give her some great holiday memories minus the big holiday prices.
This is terrifying for us who are from outside the UK and whose entire family lives back in our country of origin. I take my child back to my home country regularly as my child and I both deserve to stay connected to our family. I can imagine there being multiple times when I need to take him during term time (terminal illness, funeral, special occasions or not being able to afford out of term tickets sometimes). I would of course do my very best to ideally go during term holiday only but its just not always realistic when youve got family abroad.
No worries council. Here’s your £80. Thankfully center parcs out of holiday time saved me £1400.
I took my kids out of school for holidays abroad however they both had 100% attendance and it was only a few times on the last one it was just my youngest and we got fined for taking him out and you know what that £60 fine still paled in comparison to the 1000£ extra I would have paid
More expense for parents of children with chronic illnesses then…
I know medical appointments and the like are _supposed_ to be considered “authorised” absences, but many schools/councils are overzealous, especially when it comes to what constitutes a “reasonable” recovery period from surgery or when the absence is due to a flare-up/episode rather than a medical appointment. _Most_ parents of children with chronic illnesses will be at least threatened with fines at some point during their child’s schooling.
So if you save £500 on a holiday and are charged £80 to take the child out that is still a large enough saving to do it
Nits! All got nits! Works fir however many kids you’d have
Parents will see the fines and weigh up if it’s worth avoiding surge pricing used by hotels and travel companies during holiday times.
Hell, I travel on business a lot, and it’s sometimes annoying and amazing to see just how high the prices jump for hotels when demand gets involved.
And from a business perspective, it makes sense… but from a users perspective it still annoys me
No fines in Northern Ireland and we have an excellent school system.
I’m very surprised. I thought more people would be in support of stopping children from missing school and learning time. The curriculum is so packed nowadays we’re usually teaching to the last moment. I’m not saying children won’t get other bits of learning from a holiday but unfortunately we live in a society with standardized tests. If they miss out on learning in school, it will affect their grades and consequently their choices in life.
Not sure if it’s a really bad idea but would it not be beneficial for children, parents and potentially schools where children are not in the deeply serious part of their education (e.g. GCSEs) to allow one week per half of the year to have holiday time with no repercussions, with actual useful homework set if need be which is relevant? You could gently mention that holidays can be a good educational front e.g. languages, culture, nature, science, maths etc.
If there are important week or days best not missed (beginning of term, discussing a syllabus etc) then either make it clear that fines could be imposed or simply have the materials ready. Schooling need not be serious, provided the parents and children share information, and the school has a system in place to share information with parents directly.
Family time is important, and holidays are good way to learn more about not only your children but what you are like as a person to young children without balancing school work, paid work, food and bed time routines. Spending a fortune during school holidays isn’t beneficial for anyone, but completely unavoidable seeing as it is about supply and demand, hence price rises.
It’s taking the useful part of homeschooling (going to farms, forests, the beach, other countries etc) and the structured side of traditional schooling, with more options of spending useful family time where parents may not necessarily get the time off during school holidays anyway, let alone afford the cost.
Besides, the rise in fines probably still works out a better deal rather than the cost of a peak holiday inside or outside the UK. Parents were happily doing it, and it was barely an issue before this.
I wrote this to the education secretary, but because I’m not in her constituency, I basically got a “we will never read it” reply:
Tldr: reduce the 6 weeks holidays to 5 and give children 1week”annual leave” it’s a massive no brainier and everyone wins (except the travel agents):
As you are aware, many families face the dilemma of either incurring significant financial strain by booking holidays during peak times or facing penalties and disruptions to their children’s education by taking term-time holidays. To tackle this issue, I propose the following legislation:
Adjust Summer Holidays: Reduce the summer holiday from 6 weeks to 5 weeks. Introduce Annual Leave for Students: Allow each child one week of “annual leave” per academic year, which parents can book in advance with the school. Flexible School Approval: Schools retain the discretion to approve or decline this annual leave based on the child’s academic performance and upcoming assessments and exams. Carry-Over Policy: Any unused annual leave will be added to the summer holiday. For instance, if a child does not take their annual leave, they will enjoy a 6-week summer holiday; if they take 3 days, their summer holiday will be 5 weeks and 2 days. Benefits of the Proposal:
Financial Relief for Families: This legislation will enable families to book holidays at more affordable rates outside peak periods, reducing financial stress and making holidays more accessible. Reduced School Absences: By providing a structured and flexible approach to term-time holidays, this proposal aims to decrease unauthorized absences and ensure that children are present during crucial educational periods. Academic Considerations: Schools will have the authority to decline leave if a child’s academic performance is at risk, ensuring that educational standards are maintained. Balanced Holidays: The carry-over policy ensures that children who do not take their annual leave will not lose out on holiday time, maintaining a fair balance for all students. This proposal seeks to strike a balance between the needs of working families and the educational requirements of students. By allowing a degree of flexibility, it acknowledges the diverse circumstances faced by families while prioritizing the importance of consistent school attendance.
I believe this legislation could make a significant positive impact on both family well-being and educational outcomes. I look forward to discussing this proposal further and exploring its potential implementation.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
But how do schools find out? Assuming you lie as a parent and the kid doesnt blab? These days surely you can bullshit that its covid or something? or am I missing something very obvious???
I’ve said before and I’ll say it again. Kids should have “holiday entitlement” 5 days a year where they can take whatever holiday they want.
Obviously balanced with core times so you can’t take them out during the exams/ key revision times. But beyond that as you please.
It’s about time this stranglehold greedy companies have on hardworking parents is removed.
I’ve never actually known a parent issued a fine in the UK schools I’ve worked in. Something doesn’t add up, I see these stories in the news of parents complaining they were fined for taking a holiday, yet my experience is seeing students exhibiting chronic absenteeism and lateness with impunity. A couple cases it was because the parent was an alcoholic and often too hungover to get their kids to school in the morning. Where’s their fines?
I don’t want to lie but I also have booked a plane ticket for a Friday flight to berlin in september for a wedding.kid would go back to school on Monday . What do I tell to avoid stupid fine
Last week of school needs to be educational and not just watching movies….
33 comments
Wtf is a child going to miss from a week off primary school? I wouldn’t even mind if the fine went directly to the school to help them but it wont.
I think these are not nuanced enough.
Taking an eight year old out for a week or a 15 year old has a different impact as they are at different leaning stages with more at stake.
I have taken my daughter out of school for a fanily wedding in France. I wouldnt for a holiday but I totally understand why people do.
Of course there is disruption for the teacher but explaining its impact on the class and learning would be better than a fine which people will build into their holiday cost.
School absence is absolutely through the roof and educational achievement for younger children is looking really quite dire. Parents should most definitely be held accountable, many are far too uncaring about their child’s education.
I’m a teacher and I think it needs to be more nuanced. Parents of children with 100% attendance (or close) should be cut some slack for wanting to avoid the extortionate fees during school holidays, especially if it’s at a particularly “dead” time in the school year (e.g. July).
I’m less sympathetic if the child has poor attendance.
>School absence fines have increased from £60 to £80
You save much more holidaying outside the school holidays. This won’t deter most people.
Love how the councils pretends this isn’t just a way to suck more money out of people. Guess my kid will just be sick for a week!
It’s no surprise home schooling rates are increasing with policies like these it’s more and more appealing. Quite shockingly as well is that absences during to bullying and mental health issues aren’t considered ‘unavoidable’ and can be fines which is quite horrid tbh.
Ridiculous. A child missing a week or two from school is hardly going to be affected for the rest of their life.
From £60 to £80. I don’t think an extra £20 is going to deter a family going on holiday when they can save £1500 to go during term time..
I can’t get an ENT apoointment for my kid so they’re constantly off with ear problems and their ongoing asthma.
If I could get help with this through the NHS then he’d be in school more.
I don’t want him off school, it upsets his learning, but now we’ve been told he has to be in unless he has a doctors note because he’s been off too much. So I now need to waste GPs time and appointment slots taking him to the doctor to be told he has a chronic ear infection, (again), which they can do nothing about, give us *yet another* referral to the ENT which we cannot get access to because of the queue for it, to then take a doctors note to school to avoid getting a fine for my child being ill.
This focus on attendance is kafkaesque and actively counterproductive.
When I was in year 6 I missed two weeks of primary school to go sailing around Australia over a month period in December (something I was insanely lucky to do and will probably never be able to do again).
My teacher told me I had to send emails to my class updating them on what I was doing and my classmates had to send me emails back. I also had to write a diary and draw pictures of marine life and hand it in when I returned. My teacher didn’t mark it, just flipped through and gave me a sticker for anything that caught her eye.
My parents were very involved with making sure I was doing all of this and I think perhaps this is where the catch should be. If parents agree to do something along these lines that help not only with cultural capital but continue their development of literacy, then they should be allowed time off for an extended time.
Unless school has changed since i was there many years ago, the last week of term you did fuck all anyway
I see no-one has addressed the elephant in the room.
What is the difference to a parent taking a child out for a week to go on holiday vs a child losing a week of education due to teachers going on strike?
Apart from the fact the council can raise some revenue from one whilst vilifying the parents?
Growing up in France my parents got the “zone” dates wrong (different regions have different holiday times in France) so we went on holiday for two weeks and when we came back it was the school holidays for two weeks haha. I was 14 at the time and it had no negative impact whatsoever
Taking kids on holiday is a good thing. It broadens their knowledge in a way that can’t be achieved in schools, it’s good for their motivation and it’s good for their development.
It’s far cheaper too during term time and is beneficial to everyone if you don’t effectively try forcing people to all go away during the same weeks in the year
A child is not going to suffer or fall behind because they go on holiday for 1 or 2 weeks.
Love how everyone says “it doesn’t matter if they miss a week” and yet will be raging if the teacher applied the same logic to go on holiday for a week in term time to save some cash instead of having to go in the school holidays.
“Here’s what you need to know”
Proceeds to tell me nothing I need to know.
Is it any unauthorised absence? A day? Two days? What about a week? Is it percentage based? What about sickness? What religious holidays not celebrated nationally (such as Sukkot).
Admittedly this did give some information but just nothing to aid me in making a decision. If my child is over performing academically and attendance is great I don’t see why I shouldn’t be able to give her some great holiday memories minus the big holiday prices.
This is terrifying for us who are from outside the UK and whose entire family lives back in our country of origin. I take my child back to my home country regularly as my child and I both deserve to stay connected to our family. I can imagine there being multiple times when I need to take him during term time (terminal illness, funeral, special occasions or not being able to afford out of term tickets sometimes). I would of course do my very best to ideally go during term holiday only but its just not always realistic when youve got family abroad.
No worries council. Here’s your £80. Thankfully center parcs out of holiday time saved me £1400.
I took my kids out of school for holidays abroad however they both had 100% attendance and it was only a few times on the last one it was just my youngest and we got fined for taking him out and you know what that £60 fine still paled in comparison to the 1000£ extra I would have paid
More expense for parents of children with chronic illnesses then…
I know medical appointments and the like are _supposed_ to be considered “authorised” absences, but many schools/councils are overzealous, especially when it comes to what constitutes a “reasonable” recovery period from surgery or when the absence is due to a flare-up/episode rather than a medical appointment. _Most_ parents of children with chronic illnesses will be at least threatened with fines at some point during their child’s schooling.
So if you save £500 on a holiday and are charged £80 to take the child out that is still a large enough saving to do it
Nits! All got nits! Works fir however many kids you’d have
Parents will see the fines and weigh up if it’s worth avoiding surge pricing used by hotels and travel companies during holiday times.
Hell, I travel on business a lot, and it’s sometimes annoying and amazing to see just how high the prices jump for hotels when demand gets involved.
And from a business perspective, it makes sense… but from a users perspective it still annoys me
No fines in Northern Ireland and we have an excellent school system.
I’m very surprised. I thought more people would be in support of stopping children from missing school and learning time. The curriculum is so packed nowadays we’re usually teaching to the last moment. I’m not saying children won’t get other bits of learning from a holiday but unfortunately we live in a society with standardized tests. If they miss out on learning in school, it will affect their grades and consequently their choices in life.
Not sure if it’s a really bad idea but would it not be beneficial for children, parents and potentially schools where children are not in the deeply serious part of their education (e.g. GCSEs) to allow one week per half of the year to have holiday time with no repercussions, with actual useful homework set if need be which is relevant? You could gently mention that holidays can be a good educational front e.g. languages, culture, nature, science, maths etc.
If there are important week or days best not missed (beginning of term, discussing a syllabus etc) then either make it clear that fines could be imposed or simply have the materials ready. Schooling need not be serious, provided the parents and children share information, and the school has a system in place to share information with parents directly.
Family time is important, and holidays are good way to learn more about not only your children but what you are like as a person to young children without balancing school work, paid work, food and bed time routines. Spending a fortune during school holidays isn’t beneficial for anyone, but completely unavoidable seeing as it is about supply and demand, hence price rises.
It’s taking the useful part of homeschooling (going to farms, forests, the beach, other countries etc) and the structured side of traditional schooling, with more options of spending useful family time where parents may not necessarily get the time off during school holidays anyway, let alone afford the cost.
Besides, the rise in fines probably still works out a better deal rather than the cost of a peak holiday inside or outside the UK. Parents were happily doing it, and it was barely an issue before this.
I wrote this to the education secretary, but because I’m not in her constituency, I basically got a “we will never read it” reply:
Tldr: reduce the 6 weeks holidays to 5 and give children 1week”annual leave” it’s a massive no brainier and everyone wins (except the travel agents):
As you are aware, many families face the dilemma of either incurring significant financial strain by booking holidays during peak times or facing penalties and disruptions to their children’s education by taking term-time holidays. To tackle this issue, I propose the following legislation:
Adjust Summer Holidays: Reduce the summer holiday from 6 weeks to 5 weeks.
Introduce Annual Leave for Students: Allow each child one week of “annual leave” per academic year, which parents can book in advance with the school.
Flexible School Approval: Schools retain the discretion to approve or decline this annual leave based on the child’s academic performance and upcoming assessments and exams.
Carry-Over Policy: Any unused annual leave will be added to the summer holiday. For instance, if a child does not take their annual leave, they will enjoy a 6-week summer holiday; if they take 3 days, their summer holiday will be 5 weeks and 2 days.
Benefits of the Proposal:
Financial Relief for Families: This legislation will enable families to book holidays at more affordable rates outside peak periods, reducing financial stress and making holidays more accessible.
Reduced School Absences: By providing a structured and flexible approach to term-time holidays, this proposal aims to decrease unauthorized absences and ensure that children are present during crucial educational periods.
Academic Considerations: Schools will have the authority to decline leave if a child’s academic performance is at risk, ensuring that educational standards are maintained.
Balanced Holidays: The carry-over policy ensures that children who do not take their annual leave will not lose out on holiday time, maintaining a fair balance for all students.
This proposal seeks to strike a balance between the needs of working families and the educational requirements of students. By allowing a degree of flexibility, it acknowledges the diverse circumstances faced by families while prioritizing the importance of consistent school attendance.
I believe this legislation could make a significant positive impact on both family well-being and educational outcomes. I look forward to discussing this proposal further and exploring its potential implementation.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
But how do schools find out? Assuming you lie as a parent and the kid doesnt blab? These days surely you can bullshit that its covid or something? or am I missing something very obvious???
I’ve said before and I’ll say it again. Kids should have “holiday entitlement” 5 days a year where they can take whatever holiday they want.
Obviously balanced with core times so you can’t take them out during the exams/ key revision times. But beyond that as you please.
It’s about time this stranglehold greedy companies have on hardworking parents is removed.
I’ve never actually known a parent issued a fine in the UK schools I’ve worked in. Something doesn’t add up, I see these stories in the news of parents complaining they were fined for taking a holiday, yet my experience is seeing students exhibiting chronic absenteeism and lateness with impunity. A couple cases it was because the parent was an alcoholic and often too hungover to get their kids to school in the morning. Where’s their fines?
I don’t want to lie but I also have booked a plane ticket for a Friday flight to berlin in september for a wedding.kid would go back to school on Monday . What do I tell to avoid stupid fine
Last week of school needs to be educational and not just watching movies….