School & Holidays

If you write to the school and ask them for permission to take your child out of school,they might allow it.As long as it does not interfere with exams.

Some schools will not allow any time off for this but my daughters school alllows 10 days.

Pretty much, I'm afraid ?

Either you go weekend - weekend or you go during the summer.

Thanks both of you.

We do get 10 days off in order to comply with the 95% attendance, but this includes days off ill.

It's not only a case of getting flights of a weekend, but making sure the return (if on a Sunday) does not get back at early AM on a Monday. So then your limited as to where you go.

That is a pain.

Did you try to/from one UK airport in particular? Also maybe you could get round the problem with an indirect flight? Mind you, you've booked enough flights in the past - i expect you've already checked that out.

The other thing I thought would be to join the Board of Governors at the school and try to influence term dates ?

J has already done this & the PTA too - He got the Company to pay for a golf day for Dad's.

So make the most of pre-school years.

It's not ideal no, but if you must take children out of school it's better to take them out for a couple of days at the end of a term or half term rather than the beginning. Children who miss the start of a new unit of work or topic often find it very difficult to catch up as this is when the introductions and groundwork are done.

Being on the PTA or a parent governor will give you no more influence than anyone else, since term dates are set by the county, the only variation between schools is where they put their INSET days.

The 10 days is discretionary. In my school holiday absence will only be granted in exceptional circumstances, cheaper filghts not being one of those. If a child is removed once for say, 2 days, no more holiday leave will be granted in that academic year.

I do sympathise because we're also going away during the May helf term, and it was certainly harder to find a holiday. I still found a lot of choice travelling Sat-Sat though; Italy, Greece and Slovenia to name a few. You do have to compromise on where you go, I agree, but that's part and parcel fo having children of school age I'm afraid. We haven't booked yet as we can't decide, but I am currently favouring hiring a cottage in France; we'd drive to Dover on Friday evening, stay over, go to Calais etc then do the same on the way back and return the following Sunday.

We are going to Wales in Oct half term and our hire is Fri-Fri. Depending on what her last lesson is, I may write a very naughty letter to get her out of the afternoon so we can miss the rush hour...but only if it was PE etc, as I know she'll be doing a lot of swimming in Wales. She needs every other lesson she can get at the moment! I don't really consider taking her out for full days an option.

At my sons school , they do give 10 days at the headteachers discrestion.

Although a letter usually follows saying how it is not ideal & as a parent should think about the detrimental affect on our childs education before booking a school holiday during term.

We do try to book outside of school term but it so much more expensive , also try to not use all the 10 days.

I agree, it is a complete pain.

My daughter's infant school allows the 10 days discretionary, but my sons Junior school (within the same premises) do not allow any unauthorised time off whatsoever, unless it's in really really really really exceptional circumstances. However, it's okay for them to go on strike, to have training days in term time, or to close the school if it's too hot/too cold (in their opinion) or snowing (we're in a London Borough, not somewhere rural). The previous summer they actually closed the school for 3 afternoons in a row because of the heat - even though their premises are a relatively cool old Victorian building.

I wouldn't take my son out of school for a significant length of time, i.e. a week or more, for HIS benefit - because I wouldn't want him to miss out on lessons/projects etc that he would then struggle to catch up on. I would, however, without batting an eyelid, book a holiday that would mean missing the last 2 or 3 days of a term or half term, even though it would go down as un authorised at the school. I would also send him back one or two days later for a half term, but not a full term, as they tend to start new things at the beginning of full terms and I wouldn't want him to miss that.

I think I've approached it logically & only for half terms .

Looked at the BAA website that shows what airlines use flights to xxxx & narrowed flights down to going on weekends.

Long Haul scheduled no probs, but we only want to go to Europe, which most times involve a charter flight & they are set days & not many on a weekend. Found one going out on the Sunday, but return gets back to gatwick at 02.30am on the Monday.

I can see a gap in the market for family travel of a weekends during school holidays. Dragons Den beckons.

This is the first time in many years that I have had to face this problem but I am having to book a holiday in scholl time for my daughter. Infact I am sure it will be during QCA testing week aswell, but her dad already booked half term so I couldn't do that (Im a teacher but will be on maternity leave).

So I have had to book term time. It will be for one week.

Similarly though in 3 weeks time she is going on a holiday with grandparents and this was booked months ago before her dad messed things up.

I am sure the school will tell me that some of it will be unauthorised and being a teacher I should know better.