Term Time Holidays???

Pee

My view is that what they miss in school they will make up for with the travel experience BUT and this is a really big but if the school won't allow them time off then the only option is to lie and I feel uncomfortable about telling children that it's ok to lie. That to my mind is the big moral question here.

shellsuit

If you want to take them during term time and their attendance is good the rest of the time, go for it!

They're your children, and you can take them if you want to.

I've done it and would do it again with the little man.

For teachers and others moaning why not take a holiday in the holidays, ever thought for some people, that one or both parents might not be able to dictate when they have their holidays?

And its completely different for a child to take a week off, to a teacher taking a week off. A child isn't responsible for teaching X amount of children.

Kids grow up far too quickly, so you book that holiday and you'll have some happy holiday memories in the future! :-D x

poet123

onlyroz wrote: »

Oh well that's great then. We can all take our kids out of school with a clear conscience willy-nilly because we, personally, will not be sanctioned. I pity the poor teachers if every kid in the class decided to take a random week or two off school, not to mention the negative effect on the school's OFSTED rating.

The reality is very few people do it regularly or for extended periods. And those who do do that will not be deterred by very much.

Schools are not now required to set a target % absence for OFSTED to measure, most do, but it is no longer a requirement. So, how much weight OFSTED place on a voluntary measure is open to discussion.

bestpud

onlyroz wrote: »

So what would you do if the school declined approval and you did not want to pay a fine?

I wouldn't make a request in the first place - I'd tell them when I am taking my child out of school.

If I was fined, I wouldn't pay it - I'd take my chances on it getting to court.

If I wasn't so bolshy, I guess I'd pay the fine.

What other parents do is up to them.

pipkin71

Pee wrote: »

My view is that what they miss in school they will make up for with the travel experience BUT and this is a really big but if the school won't allow them time off then the only option is to lie and I feel uncomfortable about telling children that it's ok to lie. That to my mind is the big moral question here.

There is no need to lie.

The family can still take the holiday but it will be marked as an unauthorised absence from school rather than an approved one.

The family is then at risk of being fined but not all schools do follow through with fines.

onlyroz

bestpud wrote: »

I wouldn't make a request in the first place - I'd tell them when I am taking my child out of school.

If I was fined, I wouldn't pay it - I'd take my chances on it getting to court.

If I wasn't so bolshy, I guess I'd pay the fine.

What other parents do is up to them.

Sounds like a fantabulous example to set your kids :T

Janepig

Just had a look at the holiday we went on at the beginning of this year (but after the children had gone back to school) to compare term time and holiday prices for the same time at the beginning of 2013. Not including flights, the price for 3 nights, arriving next Wednesday, is £1,010. Not including flights, the price for 3 nights, arriving the following Wednesday, is £542. To me, it's a no-brainer. What vital part of their schooling would two children aged 6 and 8 be missing out on for 3 days? Bear in mind that in the run up to Christmas, for about 2 weeks the school were happy for them to watch dvd's and do very little else.

Jx

bestpud

Pee wrote: »

My view is that what they miss in school they will make up for with the travel experience BUT and this is a really big but if the school won't allow them time off then the only option is to lie and I feel uncomfortable about telling children that it's ok to lie. That to my mind is the big moral question here.

Or take it unauthorised and not be fined.

Or take it unauthorised and pay the fine!

Where are people getting the idea of lying from???

bestpud

onlyroz wrote: »

Sounds like a fantabulous example to set your kids :T

Why thank you!

balletshoes

onlyroz wrote: »

Oh well that's great then. We can all take our kids out of school with a clear conscience willy-nilly because we, personally, will not be sanctioned. I pity the poor teachers if every kid in the class decided to take a random week or two off school, not to mention the negative effect on the school's OFSTED rating and the disruption to the other kids in the class.

Did you read the OP's post? Her kids generally have very good attendance at school, sometimes even 100% attendance for the school year. Even if she did take her children out of school for a week, ie 5 school days, and they have very good attendance outside of that week for the rest of the school year, they will still have attended school more than a lot of their classmates.

My take on this is - OP if your children are doing well at school, have no problems usually with attendance or their lessons, put in for the holiday. If the school know in advance (even if they don't authorise the absence) surely thats causing less disruption to the school and the teacher than a child who is off for a week at short or no notice (could be due to illness etc, which is unavoidable but disrupts a class in the same way as a holiday does).

In primary school, I took my daughter out of school for holidays for 3 days at a time usually, sometimes twice a school year. It was always authorised because the school had a blanket 10-day policy for absences, and otherwise my daughter had a very good attendance record, and no problems in her lessons.

I do think its different in secondary school, theres more organisation etc needed because there are so many teachers and classes involved in a child being off school, compared to primary school.
I have the last day of Feb half term booked for a holiday next year, I will be informing the school in plenty of time, and hoping the absence will be authorised. But if it isn't, it isn't. If it turns out that it makes things difficult for my daughter to catch up that last day of term's work (I doubt it somehow) then I will take that as a lesson learned, and adjust our holiday plans for the future accordingly. No need for any lying to the school at all.