School Holiday Fines

fred246

We had a holiday in France one summer. Our French friends offered to look after our son and take him into school in France for the week. She was ordered not to speak to him in English (unless it was an emergency of course). Unfortunately it meant him missing school for 3 days in England. I worked it out 3 days is approx 15 hours missed. 168 hours studying French. My wife wrote out a letter explaining the educational benefits. UNAUTHORIZED ABSENCE was the reply. I'll never forget the next open evening with the french teacher. "His french is sooo good. How is it so good? How can this be? Zis is the best unauthorised abscence I ave ever heard of." If he had missed 3 days of school for their French exchange it would have been fine.

foxster99

fred246 wrote: »

We had a holiday in France one summer. Our French friends offered to look after our son and take him into school in France for the week. She was ordered not to speak to him in English (unless it was an emergency of course). Unfortunately it meant him missing school for 3 days in England. I worked it out 3 days is approx 15 hours missed. 168 hours studying French. My wife wrote out a letter explaining the educational benefits. UNAUTHORIZED ABSENCE was the reply. I'll never forget the next open evening with the french teacher. "His french is sooo good. How is it so good? How can this be? Zis is the best unauthorised abscence I ave ever heard of." If he had missed 3 days of school for their French exchange it would have been fine.

Sounds like it did him a lot of good.

I think anything like this is an excellent idea.

I also think spending quality time on holiday with your kids is very important. As is taking them to visit their grandparents in their native country, visiting Father Christmas in Laplap, trekking in Northern Italy for two weeks, seeing the princesses In Disneyland, going to Lourdes with granny and all the other great family things.

By great good luck children in England get 13 weeks holiday from school. So their parents can fit these things in and more, yet still see that their kids get a full education.

fred246

maman wrote: »

OMy point is that, even if you happen to have a A*** achieving child it's still wrong to give them the message that they can raise the proverbial 2 fingers to school rules and the law.

Just spotted that previous argument. Yes he did get A*** actually. I wonder what the law is because he didn't miss school, he just went to a different one.

maman

fred246 wrote: »

Just spotted that previous argument. Yes he did get A*** actually. I wonder what the law is because he didn't miss school, he just went to a different one.

Yours was obviously an unusual case. It was kind of your French friends to look after him and take him into school (also kind of the school to have him) so you made the best of it. But you had potentially 13 weeks to go on holiday, yet you chose to go in term time.


I've used the analogy before but it wouldn't be acceptable to just take off from a job to go on holiday when it wasn't your allotted leave time. That's the message you're giving to children. They know they should be at school but that their parent has chosen to ignore school rules and take them out. I believe that's irresponsible.

alwaysskint96

maman wrote: »

I've used the analogy before but it wouldn't be acceptable to just take off from a job to go on holiday when it wasn't your allotted leave time. .

What about someone like my friend who works at a holiday childcare/after school club? The only times she CANT take holiday is during the school holidays as obviously the busiest time at work. And this scenerio must apply to many parents- not everyone can take school holidays off work. So kids should go without holidays just because their parents work?

foxster99

alwaysskint96 wrote: »

What about someone like my friend who works at a holiday childcare/after school club? The only times she CANT take holiday is during the school holidays as obviously the busiest time at work. And this scenerio must apply to many parents- not everyone can take school holidays off work. So kids should go without holidays just because their parents work?

Short answer: Yes.

Slightly longer answer: Children have a legal right to an education, not to a holiday.

And a bit more: These are life choices that were not forced onto these people. They chose to have children and put them into state schools knowing the holiday restriction this would mean for a few years. They also, perhaps even around the same time, chose a job that would have restricted holidays that meant they couldn't have time off when their kids did. If these things were going to be a problem then they shouldn't have made these life choices.

maman

foxster99 wrote: »

Short answer: Yes.

Slightly longer answer: Children have a legal right to an education, not to a holiday.

And a bit more: These are life choices that were not forced onto these people. They chose to have children and put them into state schools knowing the holiday restriction this would mean for a few years. They also, perhaps even around the same time, chose a job that would have restricted holidays that meant they couldn't have time off when their kids did. If these things were going to be a problem then they shouldn't have made these life choices.

I agree and it's often not the case that the parents can't take any holidays out of term time just that maybe they have to go on a rota.

alwaysskint96 wrote: »

What about someone like my friend who works at a holiday childcare/after school club? The only times she CANT take holiday is during the school holidays as obviously the busiest time at work. And this scenerio must apply to many parents- not everyone can take school holidays off work. So kids should go without holidays just because their parents work?

As we said, that's the choice your friend has made to sign up for a job where she's only needed when children are out of school. If those really are the rules, then she must have known that when she took the job. Not very convenient for a working parent I'd have thought but if it's all she could get then she has to live with it until her children are out of school age or she changes jobs.


Although that wasn't my analogy. Using your friend as an example, I was suggesting that parents who take their children out of school in term time are behaving as if she knew the contract, knew she wasn't allowed holidays but went anyway as she didn't think the rules she'd signed up for shouldn't apply to her. Just think, she could even have volunteered for day at the kids' club at her holiday destination and come back and told her boss the holiday was educational!;):D

alwaysskint96

maman wrote: »

I agree and it's often not the case that the parents can't take any holidays out of term time just that maybe they have to go on a rota.





As we said, that's the choice your friend has made to sign up for a job where she's only needed when children are out of school. If those really are the rules, then she must have known that when she took the job. Not very convenient for a working parent I'd have thought but if it's all she could get then she has to live with it until her children are out of school age or she changes jobs.


Although that wasn't my analogy. Using your friend as an example, I was suggesting that parents who take their children out of school in term time are behaving as if she knew the contract, knew she wasn't allowed holidays but went anyway as she didn't think the rules she'd signed up for shouldn't apply to her. Just think, she could even have volunteered for day at the kids' club at her holiday destination and come back and told her boss the holiday was educational!;):D

LOL she took the job years ago as it meant the kids got a place at the playscheme and at the time the headteacher was able to authorise leave. As a single parent it also meant she didnt have to arrange expensive childcare while working in an office /shop.


Even if you do work in a field where holidays can be taken all year round then there is no guarantee that you can actually get the holidays matching up with school holidays- esp 2 parents trying to do so


So the kids dont get holiday yet further up the thread it states that its important for families to have time together,


And education is far more than just school anyway

Comms69

alwaysskint96 wrote: »

LOL she took the job years ago as it meant the kids got a place at the playscheme and at the time the headteacher was able to authorise leave. As a single parent it also meant she didnt have to arrange expensive childcare while working in an office /shop. - Right so that's why she chose that job; she cant now complain about it!


Even if you do work in a field where holidays can be taken all year round then there is no guarantee that you can actually get the holidays matching up with school holidays- esp 2 parents trying to do so - That depends. If your employer values you it's very easy. If they don't, then it's very difficult. It's almost like hard work pays off...


So the kids dont get holiday yet further up the thread it states that its important for families to have time together, - Nope, kids get holidays all the time. Perhaps it's a weekend in the lake district, instead of the Bahamas; but they'll still be together


And education is far more than just school anyway

I agree; it's a shame that so many parents don't bother with education at home...

heartbreak_star

It bemuses me when holidays became so super-duper important. When I was younger it was "a nice thing to have" not "a necessity that must happen at least once a year"...

(Just an observation btw - ymmv, as ever )

HBS x