Banning term-time holidays – is it really necessary?

I don’t have kids myself, but can speak from my own experience when I was at school.
I grew up in Ausralia, and my dad is English, so we have a lot of family over here. The only way we were able to fit in a decent-length trip to see them was to take time off during term time – which we did twice: once when I was about 10, and again whe I was about 16.
These were six-week trips to the other side of the world, which had the benefit of allowing me to get to know my extended family (we did not have much family in Australia on my mother’s side), and also to see a bit of Europe while we were here, thus expanding my cultural horizons (and infecting me with the travel bug – but that’s another story). It meant I took two weeks off either side of the regular spring two-week school holiday period.
Yes, I missed out on some school work, but the schools were quite accommodating at the time, helping me to catch up on what I’d missed, and I certainly don’t think any lasting damage was done from the time I’d missed – indeed, I think the benefits of travel and interacting with family far outweighed the drawbacks in my case.
That said, if we were talking about missing a couple of weeks of school every year to save a few quid on a trip to the Costa Del Sol, I’d find it much harder to argue the ‘for’ case.

As I have no faith whatever in this “government’s” ability to run education properly – particularly with the measures already imposed – I object to any government interference in the Head Teacher’s ability to choose who can and can not go on holiday during term time.After all he knows personally how much the child will or will not suffer. Gove hasn’t a clue.

It is the poor that will suffer – the rich can afford to go at peak time anyway – the poor often can’t. This is even more true now. But I would agree that holidays at exam time should be banned.

I really don’t see why the Education Minister is getting his panties in a twist about children missing the last two weeks of Summer term, unless of course the child is sitting final exams,because if the teacher is worth his/her salt they will “go over” what had been covered in the two weeks when children start back after the holidays.

I’m married to a deputy head teacher, you don’t know what the stresses are unless you are a teacher or married to one. They really do deserve the holidays. But every time a holiday comes it costs a fortune. Just for 2 plane seats it costs £500 more, than a week later. My wife doesn’t blame hard up parents taking there children on holiday in term time, it saves quite a lot, and 2 weeks out so long as its not exam time makes little difference. My wife retires shortly and we can’t wait for the savings and also the silence of a peaceful holiday.

“A child has a right to education not to school.” – Leicester City Council School appeal panel board, 2009-2010.

and on that basis I do take my child out of school for holidays, and I always ask for any schoolwork she will miss so that she won’t miss out on her education.

Every silver lining has a cloud in front of it unfortunately. The present position where only a small number of children are off school in term time suits us fine. It means we can have better holidays for the same price and that our enjoyment of a holiday is not ruined by annoying children. Pre-school children are not much of a nuisance because they tend to spend a lot of time asleep, go to bed early, and are mothered continuously. Generally foreign holidays are still a luxury and luxuries are not universally affordable. For those that cannot go abroad it’s better that the main school holidays fall when the weather is finest. As for teachers, they are lucky that their employers facilitate their absence during the summer period – many employees do not have that choice because of the seasonal nature of their occupation.

I take my three children’s education very very seriously, I find it really sad as a two parenty family both of whom work full time have never been able to take them abroad on a holiday. This is because we cannot afford to go in term time. I think people who say that parent’s taking their children on holiday during term time are doing it to save money are niaive. It is not about saving money but about hard working people getting a well earned/ deserved break with their nearest and dearest.

Before anyone argue’s that I can do this in this country during the school holidays….. give me a break the weather is so unreliable you end up cooped up in a caravan watching the rain. The other thing I find infuriating is the lack of real school work that goes on in the last week of term especially on the run up to the summer holidays!

I work in a school dealing with the attendance and issuing fines to parents who have requested holiday leave yet the principal has denied the absence so therefore a fine is issued, after we send parents a letter unauthorising the holiday request. If parents can proof that they are going away for personal reasons such as a death in the family or wedding then the absence can be approved. As an academy we don’t want the unauthorised absence on our statistics yet we don’t want the absence in general, however due to the expensive costs of holidays during half term it is becoming very difficult for parents to meet the price tag and as the fine is cheaper than the holiday then parents would rather pay the fine. I really thing something needs to be done more with lowering the cost of holidays during half term then parents would take their children away during the correct time as opposed to requesting leave and their children having to miss an important part of their education yet in order to spend precious time as a family I really cannot blame parents for taking their children out of school for a family holiday during school time. If holiday organisations etc can afford to cater for holiday makers during out of peak times why can’t they during half term. I do believe that if a fair price was considered then all families would take their children on holiday during half term holidays which would then stop parents being issued fines and schools attendance going into persistent absence or special measures, education and academic results would rise because the children are in school at the governed time as opposed to on holiday! I would just like to point out that despite me working for a school and helping with this futures generation I too cannot afford to go on Holiday during half term and haven’t been abroad for 3 years, due to the cost and i am not allowed time off from work to go during term time either! This matter really needs to be put forward to the powers that be in order to come to an agreement that suits all families.

Could someone just clarify for me: I’ve read on a website that the fines are per child per day of absence, so a 2 week holiday would constitue a fine of £1200 per child if both parents are fined. Is that right, or is it just a fixed penalty for the period of absence?

So how is it fair that the schools can take kids out on trips to Spain, Rome, Andorra skiing ect all in term time yet contradicting the new policy of parents taking their own children out in term time? Pot and kettle spring to mind