School Holiday Fines

sheramber

School holiday fines: Parents hit by penalties rise 93%
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-47613726

foxster99

sheramber wrote: »

School holiday fines: Parents hit by penalties rise 93%
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-47613726

And you know who to thank for that?

Mr I-took-my-kids-on-two-term-time-foreign-sunshine-holidays-in-a-year Jon Platt.

Until he decided to ruin his family's lives by fighting a perfectly justified £60 fine, schools and local authorities had the flexibility to decide when fines were appropriate. His case resulted in the High Court making clear that regular attendance means attending every school day unless authorisation for an absence was agreed by the school.

The result? Schools and LAs now have to issue many more Penalty Notices than before to comply with the law.

Jon Platt must have set some record for achieving precisely the legal opposite of what he set out to.

He also single-handedly managed to reverse a previously long-running trend of improving school attendance by encouraging many families to take term-time holidays, thus reducing the educational outcomes of thousands of children.

Plus, by encouraging parents not to pay the low fines they were issued with, he also got thousands of parents a court appearance, criminal records that will dog them for decades, and heavy court-imposed fines.

Way to go, Jon.

maman

foxster99 wrote: »

And you know who to thank for that?

Mr I-took-my-kids-on-two-term-time-foreign-sunshine-holidays-in-a-year Jon Platt.

Until he decided to ruin his family's lives by fighting a perfectly justified £60 fine, schools and local authorities had the flexibility to decide when fines were appropriate. His case resulted in the High Court making clear that regular attendance means attending every school day unless authorisation for an absence was agreed by the school.

The result? Schools and LAs now have to issue many more Penalty Notices than before to comply with the law.

Jon Platt must have set some record for achieving precisely the legal opposite of what he set out to.

He also single-handedly managed to reverse a previously long-running trend of improving school attendance by encouraging many families to take term-time holidays, thus reducing the educational outcomes of thousands of children.

Plus, by encouraging parents not to pay the low fines they were issued with, he also got thousands of parents a court appearance, criminal records that will dog them for decades, and heavy court-imposed fines.

Way to go, Jon.

While I agree with your summary of the outcome I think he honestly believed he had a valid case. It's a case of 'beware of unintended outcomes'.

I say this as a firm believer that parents shouldn't take their children out of school during term time for holidays.

foxster99

maman wrote: »

While I agree with your summary of the outcome I think he honestly believed he had a valid case. It's a case of 'beware of unintended outcomes'.

He was a puppet who only came to realise it too late in the legal process.

He never had a valid case and was never going to win. He was used to achieve an aim. It's just a pity so many other parents and children suffered as a consequence of his naivety.

maman

foxster99 wrote: »

He was a puppet who only came to realise it too late in the legal process.

He never had a valid case and was never going to win. He was used to achieve an aim. It's just a pity so many other parents and children suffered as a consequence of his naivety.

I think it was reasonable to assume that 'regular attendance' could be interpreted in more than one way. When schools attendance is scrutinised by Ofsted, %age attendances are used. Mr Platt believed this sort of measure would be sufficient evidence that his children attended regularly.


I don't know why I'm arguing this point as I don't believe in term time holidays anyway.

Spendless

maman wrote: »

I think it was reasonable to assume that 'regular attendance' could be interpreted in more than one way. When schools attendance is scrutinised by Ofsted, %age attendances are used. Mr Platt believed this sort of measure would be sufficient evidence that his children attended regularly.


I don't know why I'm arguing this point as I don't believe in term time holidays anyway.

You are aware that schools are referring to the LA for absences that are NOT holidays aren't you?

I know of examples of where funerals haven't been authorised. This includes a family where Dad died unexpectedly. School wanted the children in within hours of them finding his body otherwise unauthorised. When it was his funeral school wanted the children in on the morning because the funeral was at 2.30pm, never mind that this was their Dad they were laying to rest.



Illnesses are getting the same treatment despite being ill being a statuory defence. The onus is on you to prove illness beyond reasonable doubt if you are issued with a penalty notice/court processings. Fair enough you may think, but how do you prove something like s & d? I've known parents reduced to taking pics of their child vomiting to prove they are telling the truth. I spoke to my Drs recently and they said they have abacklog of work caused by the schools demanding evidence even though BMA have said it's not part of a GPs remit and the DofE stating that schools should authorise illness unless they have reason to believe parent is lying. For mental health problems, how can you prove them? I had it myself recently. Teenage daughter has been sufferring with several MH problems for months, including suicideal thoughts we eventually got a CAMHS home visit appt for 1.5 after schoo started. We asked to keep daughter at home prior to the visit, aware that her anxiety would be sky high which could have detremental effects both at school and whether she was prepared to talk to her new camhs worker (she's already clammed up on more than one occassion and we were at last chance saloon). School refused to authorise that 1.5 hours, wanting her to come in until just before the appt even though they'd been instrumental in helping get the appt in the first place.

There's just some examples I can think of off the top of my head, there's many more. Still think it's all about people wanting a cheap jolley??

maman

I agree that the examples you give are wrong and positively inhumane.
Such is the punitive effect of Ofsted.
Gove for PM anyone?

Gloomendoom

maman wrote: »

Gove for PM anyone?

A nightmare scenario.

GeniusJ

Something that's been overlooked

Seems fine for schools to arrange trips abroad during term time of course which seems pretty much like a holiday to me.

10 days ski-ing this year, a week in Austria. Weekends to France and Portugal.

I asked the teacher and they love it as they get a free trip and a free reccie trip to plan in some instances.

No work is done during these trips but they are branded educational nonetheless.

If I wanted to take my kids around Rome or Ancient Greece for a week I am not allowed but the schools are??

Anyone else think this is hypocritical?

Clowance

I presume this fine does not apply to them, which seems unfair. I have no axe to grind as both my kids are now adults, although I did take them out of school for genuinely educational holidays. Both have been to uni and on track for careers.