Taking Children out of School in Term Time

neneromanova

duchy wrote: »

Gosh and to think of all the many times I took my son abroad ........and his father my ex husband did too ......not to mention the many people I sent on holiday through work .........and none of us were ever stopped !!!

Either you are scaremongering ...... or if speaking from personal experience you must look very dodgy .

Do you seriously think the airports have the time or inclination to stop every single parent travelling on holiday with their kids. What utter rubbish !!

No-one is stopped without good reason like an all ports alert or some very dodgy body language !

Nope, Not scaremongering, nor my personal experience, but I've read stories on here where it has happened, and to be honest, it's always better to be prepared than to get there and them say sorry, different surname, not letter, go away.

Jagraf

peachyprice wrote: »

Has she ever needed it to leave the country?

In all the times we have travelled with my own children with a different surname to me, or other people's children, we have only ever been questioned coming back into the UK, only once have we been asked for a letter, that was for my daughters friend. With my children they've only ever been asked general questions, like 'where's daddy' or 'are you with both your parents' or 'where have you been', particularly with my children with a Portuguese surname, I think they just wanted to make sure they were English.

I haven't heard anyone yet who has been asked for a letter when leaving the UK.

The 3 times I know of is once coming back into the UK, and once going out on Eurostar and once to Canada.

Never when she's with me though (mum). Very bizarre. Not sure there is any system, maybe my ex looks dodgy too ......

pollyanna24

Eurghh, really don't want to ask ex for a letter (which could realistically be forged anyway). Not that he wouldn't give me one as he knows I am taking them away, just annoying as he takes them abroad all the time and it's not an issue simply because I made the mistake of giving the eldest his surname and then he decided not to marry me, but anyway....

I handed in the letter today and got a response in my eldest's bookbag at pickup.

It said I have two days authorised, but the other two will be unauthorised.

The letter included my girls' attendance records for this school year (100% for eldest and 95.1% for youngest (two of these were for illness and two for other reasons).

It also included a leaflet showing the policy. It mentioned fines, but only for children who were consistently absent, as in 21 days in the last term.

It mentioned taking children on holiday and that it was disliked, but there was nothing about a fine in that section, so can only assume there is no fine.

mgdavid

duchy wrote: »

Gosh and to think of all the many times I took my son abroad ........and his father my ex husband did too ......not to mention the many people I sent on holiday through work .........and none of us were ever stopped !!!

Either you are scaremongering ...... or if speaking from personal experience you must look very dodgy .

Do you seriously think the airports have the time or inclination to stop every single parent travelling on holiday with their kids. What utter rubbish !!

No-one is stopped without good reason like an all ports alert or some very dodgy body language !

What utter rubbish - as you said yourself!
It only needs to be the one casual spotcheck of the day to be the OP, and having a letter is the difference between looking smug and looking an ar5e.

balletshoes

Jagraf wrote: »

The 3 times I know of is once coming back into the UK, and once going out on Eurostar and once to Canada.

Never when she's with me though (mum). Very bizarre. Not sure there is any system, maybe my ex looks dodgy too ......

just to add to this (not a parent thing, but a different-name thing) - I have been asked several times for a letter of permission for my nieces and my daughter's friend when I've taken them abroad, all at Luton airport on our way back into the UK - and in April last year, on our way out of the UK at Ebbsfleet Eurostar station. The one time I didn't have a letter of permission with me (for my niece when she was 10) I got a telling-off from the officer at Luton airport. I always carry letters of permission with me now.

pollyanna24

balletshoes wrote: »

just to add to this (not a parent thing, but a different-name thing) - I have been asked several times for a letter of permission for my nieces and my daughter's friend when I've taken them abroad, all at Luton airport on our way back into the UK - and in April last year, on our way out of the UK at Ebbsfleet Eurostar station. The one time I didn't have a letter of permission with me (for my niece when she was 10) I got a telling-off from the officer at Luton airport. I always carry letters of permission with me now.

Kinda get this as she's your niece and not your child, but wonder if I have to do the same thing for my children just because they don't share my surname. I am planning on bringing their birth certs which obv have my name on.

balletshoes

pollyanna24 wrote: »

Kinda get this as she's your niece and not your child, but wonder if I have to do the same thing for my children just because they don't share my surname. I am planning on bringing their birth certs which obv have my name on.

I think having their birth certs with you you'll be fine, as each time I've been questioned the first question has been "are you a parent of this child".

trollopscarletwoman

Haven't read much of this.

Live in seaside town where much work is seasonal (9-10) months per year.

Colleague, wife works with says they are allowed a seasonal holiday break irrespective of school.

As a family they are on it now in Tenerife.