unauthorised abscence from school

tired_mum

dont know if this is the right board please move if neccesary
ok we are going on hol to the carribean on the 1st jan for 2 weeks and my 3 kids will miss school for 7 days now the junior school has said ok 5 days authorised 2 days unauthorised but the senior school has said no it will be unauthorised now what:eek:
my hubby and i have saved for 3 years for this trip and thought long and hard as to when we will take it as the kids have no exams we decided that this would be the final year we could remove them from school they had 5 days off in oct as my mum paid for us to go to butlins for our 16th wedding anniversery i cant understand how 2 schools in the borough can have different rules
in an ideal world we would not have taken them in term time but the cost for 5 of us in holiday time was too dear
any advice

AMIE399

I Think You Are Allowed Up To 2 Weeks Befoe It Becomes Unauthorised, From Sept - July

I Think You Should Ring The School And Ask For A Valid Reason Why They Are Refusing, Then If They Still Refuse, Ask Them For The Number Of The School Authorities For That Area As I Think They Can Overide It.

Good Luck

Fait_accompli

How old are your kiddies?

tired_mum

hi youngest is 10 the other 2 are 11 and 13

soolin

My school also has an unauthorised policy as well which basically means that they grant no permission at all to holiday during term time.

However, they will accept a letter from us saying that we are going to take our children out of school for 5 days, or whatever, and they will still be marked as being absent without permission, but they won't report us to any official body.

This irritates me a bit especially since they have so many teachers off sick that they often go a whole day being 'minded' by a classroom assistant and watch videos or catch up on their homework.

Soo

tired_mum

this is really putting a downer on a hol we have been working hard for i dont know what i will walk back to a fine or maybe court it is really worrying me i wish i hadnt told the truth and said when we came back from hol they were ill but it isnt in my nature to tell fibs and i dont want my kids to think it is acceptable

JoeyEmma

My other half is a teacher. He gets loads of kids taking time off so their parents can take them on holiday. It always annoys him as even though parents promise they will make sure that their kids catch up on the work, they never properly do. It means he has to spend longer getting the kids who were absent to catch up, meaning that the other kids in the class suffer. 5 days may not seem a lot to you, but thats a lot of lessons for a kid to miss out on.

And yes, I see the downside of it too. As he is a teacher we can only go away at holiday time as well, meaning it is very expensive, so we have to miss out on all the exotic places we would love to go to, but can't afford in school holidays.

wizzkid_3

I could be wrong, but I think it is only the schools reputation that is spoiled with 'unauthorised absence'. What are they going to do about it anyway? they (the kids) are far too young for this to go on any record that could be highlighted for potential employers or univercities. I would immagine that they are just trying to frighten you. Go and have a wonderful holiday!

Seakay

This page from the Essex County Council site has some more information:

http://www.essexcc.gov.uk/vip8/ecc/ECCWebsite/dis/faq.jsp?channelOid=16355&guideOid=14701&oid=17668

Penelope_Penguin

Hi, Tired Mum! The Dfes website states that authorising absence lies with the school, and is not granted as a right.

I'd say that missing primary school is less important, as most learning is repeated, but that high school is more problematic. If you miss a lesson, that work has to be caught up, or subsequent learning can be interupted.

Having said that, my children only miss school through illness if they are bed-bound. Friends of theirs miss when they have the slightest sniffle.

HTH, Penny. x

emmaBZ

i think its bloody stupid.... i take my kids out of school for 1 week when we go away and i refuse to ask schools permision !!!! they are my children not thiers.... mine are 9...6...2
at seondary school i can understand it and i avoid when my son had his SATS...