The rules on taking children out of school for a term time holiday

Wales Online

21 hours ago

The rules on taking children out of school for a term time holiday
Parents can save hundreds, if not thousands of pounds, by taking holidays in term time. But they risk fines and disrupting their child's education
One study hjas shown 62 per cent of parents were ready to break the law for a cheaper holiday
(Image: Getty )
With the price of going away during school holidays rising dramatically, some parents take their children out of classes to get cheaper deals. But doing this they risk fines and even, potentially, prosecution and imprisonment.
Some parents may feel that paying a fine for not sending their child to school is still cheaper than taking more expensive family breaks during the school holidays. Some families may not be able to afford to go away together at all unless it is during term time.
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Whether permission is given or action is taken if not can depend on where you live and where your child goes to school.
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There are rules and laws on missing school but some of the action is discretionary and up to the school and local authority.
Latest data on parents and carers not sending their children to school show that different local education authorities around Wales take a more, or less lenient approach and you can read more about that here.
Rules on when a child must be in school and enforcement of the law around that depends not only on the local education authority but also whether you are in England, Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland. Private schools are also able to set their own rules. Sign up for our free daily briefing on the biggest issues facing the nation sign up to the Wales Matters newsletter here.
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In Wales, parents don't have automatic rights to take their child out of school for term time holidays. Headteachers can agree up to 10 school days of authorised absence in a school year, but holidays may not be considered a valid reason.
Schools have individual policies and must also consider the impact on the child's education when agreeing authorised absence. They may also look at the child's attendance record and other matters.
Holidays are generally not considered exceptional circumstances to miss school, but there may be specific situations where a headteacher might grant permission, such as the family's country of origin or other personal matters .
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If permission to take your child out of school for a holiday is not agreed then the absence will be marked as unauthorised and could result in fines or legal action and even imprisonment.
A child can only miss school lawfully when they are too ill to attend, or if parents/carers asked for and got prior consent from the school saying the child's absence as 'authorised'.
Head teachers in Wales, like those in England, are required to submit details of each child's attendance to the local authority and are under some pressure to improve attendance post-pandemic, so may be less likely to agree authorised time off lessons now.
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Headteachers can also make recommendations for sanctions if attendance is low or absence is unauthorised, but those sanctions, such as fines and prosecution, are decided on finally by the local authority.
In some parts of Wales school leaders have expressed frustration that their local councils have not been willing to hand out fines to help them address low attendance.
It is for local authorities to decide whether to issue fines or prosecute parents/carers for a child's unauthorised school absence. But sanctions, such as fines of £60, rising to £120 if not paid promptly within 28-days, are still issued on a discretionary basis.
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More than 500 parents were fined across Wales last term for not sending their children to school with more than 100 prosecutions.
Education inspectorate Esytn has recently described low school attendance in Wales as "an important national concern" and the Welsh Government says school attendance is a national priority. This means schools may be getting tougher on whether to agree authorised absence.
Latest figures on fines and proescutions for non-authorised attendance show while some councils are issuing fines and prosecuting parents for not sending their children to school others, such as Anglesey, are not.
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Asked about this Anglesey Council said: "This isn't because sometimes there hasn't been a need. However we have made a decision to focus on working with parents without having to resort to using legal channels."
A recent report from Torfaen Council's education scrutiny committee said the 'primary reason' for issuing a fixed penalty notice there has been unauthorised holidays taken during term time.
Blaenavon independent councillor Janet Jones asked if parents were 'weighing up the cost' of a fine versus a holiday which is likely to be cheaper in term time.
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Education welfare officer Hannah Catherine Moore told the committee:'We really need to make sure, if parents are taking children out of school on a regular basis, we can show them the impact that is having."
'Obviously there are some parents who take the fine and continue to take the children out of school but what we are seeing is, within certain year groups and within certain families, doing that year on year it has been good on reducing that.'
Ms Moore told councillors that parents are entitled to request term-time leave for pupils but said it is for schools to decide on requests. Factors such as the time of year and overall attendance can be considered.
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'Some schools might implement a policy that it won't authorise any holidays. Other schools do give consideration to the nature of the request. It might be a pupil returning to their homeland. Every single situation is very different."
So, while there are laws on school attendance, headteachers can grant up to 10 days authorised absence. While holidays may not be seen as a valid reason for a permitted absence, the decision is at the discretion of the head.
Parents and carers can and are being fined and prosecuted for taking their child out of school without permission, whether for holidays or other reasons.
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