Term-Time Family Holidays - The Reprise

One of my early blogs (over a year ago now – yikes!!!) looked at the phenomenon of term-time family holidays.  I looked at the legal framework and the circumstances in which headteachers could authorise school absences so that families could take holidays during the school term; invariably to keep costs down. 

 

That has proven to be my most popular blog to date, the subject matter being of interest to all working families with children still of school age.

 

In this follow-up piece, I look at changes over the last year to the legal landscape so far as term-time holidays are concerned.  I look at how schools are applying rules introduced last autumn, and moves afoot in Parliament to look at this issue afresh. 

 

What’s Changed?

The baseline legal requirements are the same as a year ago.  Parents have a legal obligation to ensure their children receive what is described as a “suitable full-time education”.  A child must be educated when he or she is of “compulsory school age”:  currently, this means between the ages of 5 and 17 (the upper age will increase to 18 from next year).

 

Headteachers were entitled under the then rules to authorise pupils to be absent for up to ten days each year (and in rare situations, for longer periods) in “special circumstances”.  This was intended to cover life’s unexpected eventualities that might require a child to be away:  illness, bereavement or inability to get to school due to bad weather.  In addition, many headteachers were approving absences under this power so that children could go on a family holiday during the school term. 

 

It was this latter accommodation by headteachers that lead to a legal change on 1 September 2013, with the entry into force of the Education (Pupil Registration) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2013.  These Regulations do away with the ten-day threshold, as well as the qualifier “special circumstances”.  Instead, headteachers now may only grant leaves of absence in “exceptional circumstances”.

 

I’ll come on shortly to look at whether in reality there is any difference between circumstances that are “special” as opposed to “exceptional”.

 

It’s worth noting that this legislative change was snuck in through the back door.  The Regulations were put before Parliament on 4 April 2013.  There was no request to debate them.  They passed under a negative resolution – which means that they would pass so long as Parliament did not vote against them.  Parliament would have had an opportunity to discuss the Regulations, had anyone tabled an early-day motion, but nobody did.  There was no discussion and the changes wrought by the Regulations became law by stealth.

 

The Regulations also amend the procedures for issuing penalty notices to each parent who fails to ensure their child’s regular attendance at school.  The fine is £60 if paid within 21 days; or £120 if paid within 28 days.  These time periods for payment are shorter than previously.  As before, prosecutions may follow if payment is not made (together with other measures outlined in my earlier blog). 

 

Why is this an issue? 

Primarily due to cost.    Prices sky-rocket during the school holiday periods.  They did a year ago.  They did apparently in the 1960s, when a motion was introduced in the House of Commons expressed thus:  “That this House, recognising the need to extend and adjust the holiday period so as to relieve congestion at the peak period, asks Her Majesty’s Government to set up a committee to examine the question urgently with special reference to the educational, tourist trade and transport interests concerned, and the problem of summer time, with the power to recommend early action.”

 

And nothing has changed…  A Telegraph Travel price checking survey conducted in February 2014 confirmed that parents pay on average between 30% and 40% more for a week’s break during the school holiday period.  A week’s break could be up to 62% more expensive in August than during term time in July.

 

Beyond cost, the issue affects a smaller cohort of families where parents cannot readily arrange their time off so it falls in step with school holidays.  For example, members of the armed forces and those with particularly specialist professions whose absence would leave vital facilities inadequately staffed.

 

What’s happening in practice? 

This seems to differ from school to school.  Some appear to be approaching term-time absences to accommodate family holidays in the same way as they were prior to September 2013, on a case-by-case basis.  After all, all that has really changed is that the test is now one of “exceptional” circumstances rather than “special” ones.  To many, this might look like a matter of semantics.

 

But others appear much more anxious.  In a recent debate by the Commons Backbench Committee (more of which in a moment), an example was cited of a headteacher who wrote in the following terms:  “As from 1^st September 2013 any holidays during term time will not be authorised, unless there are exceptional circumstances, for which there are set criteria.  This is Government policy…”  This was in response, which was refused, to a request to take a child on holiday for a week, following her diagnosis with a brain tumour. 

 

The letter from the headteacher in this particular example cited reads into the new law provisions that are not there.  There are not set criteria for authorising term-time holiday absences.  That some headteachers are proceeding under the misapprehension that there are is troubling. 

 

What’s the solution?

According to Education Secretary Michael Gove, the answer is to stagger term dates.  The logic goes that, if different schools have different term dates, the logjam of demand that causes prices to skyrocket will not occur.  Said Gove last month, “There's no need to sacrifice your child's education in order to secure a cheaper holiday,” he said. “Schools now have the freedom to change their term dates in order to allow students and families the opportunity to go on holiday at different times.”  The Education Secretary’s proposal has the support of two of the country's biggest travel associations, ABTA and the Association of Independent Tour Operators (AITO). 

 

Some parents are adopting a more proactive response.  A petition started by Donna Thresher, an Essex mother, in March 2013 propounds that: “All children who have a good attendance record should be allowed the opportunity to enjoy quality time with their parents on an annual holiday of up to 10 days once per year.”

 

It goes on:  “Good parents or parents that work full time should not be criminalised for wanting to enjoy an affordable annual family holiday.”

 

That petition began life prior to the legislative change in September 2013.  Said Ms Thresher after the new regulations came into force:  “The original petition still stands in its own right but we do feel that the change in legislation has impacted the costs even further”.

 

That petition attracted some 170,000 signatures, significantly more than the 100,000 required to be considered for a debate under the Government’s e-petitions initiative.

 

Ms Thresher is not alone.  A group called “Parents Want a Say” has a number of e-petitions on its website relating to holidays and term-time absences.

 

And so it was that the Commons Backbench Committee came to debate the issue on 24 February 2014.  Both the transcript and a video of the debate are available, and make for engaging reading and viewing, respectively.  There appears to be a degree of appetite on the part of many MPs to ensure that the issue is managed with an element of common sense and that headteachers (rather than Parliament) are the final arbiters when it comes to authorising – or not – holidays during school term. 

 

Particularly outspoken on point is Liberal Democrat MP, John Hemming, who said there had not been enough debate on what was a "big issue".

 

"The problem is half-terms all tend to be the same, leading to a very big demand for holidays all at the same time,” he said. “And reducing the flexibility of people to take their children out of school adds to that."

 

What emerges from the debate, and whether any further legislative amendment is tabled, remains to be seen…

 

Practical Tips

I offered a series of tips in my earlier blog on topic.  To those, I add these three:

 

1. Contact your school now to ascertain how it approaches the changes introduced in September 2013 to the question of term-time absences.  Is there a policy ban on any term-time holidays?  Does the school have a view about what might comprise “exceptional circumstances”?
    
2. Be vocal!  Many parents have – as the recent Commons Backbench Committee debate shows – already contacted their MPs to highlight how their particular circumstances bring them into conflict with the perception by some headteachers that there is a blanket-ban on term-time absences.  As the petitions of Ms Thresher et al show, a groundswell of support can make politicians sit up and take notice.  And with next year being an election year, there might just be a willingness to be more receptive to this issue than otherwise.  Sign the online petitions.  Write to your MP.  Share your particular experiences.
    
3. Shop around and be flexible about where you might want to go.  The Telegraph Travel survey showed that, when different destinations were chosen, the price rises during school holiday periods were far less pronounced.

 

Term-Time Family Holidays

Introduction

Every working parent knows this story.  Holiday prices skyrocket during high season – in other words, the school holidays!  Flights and accommodation can be up to twice as expensive as during the school term.  So, the very time when children are most able to go on a family holiday is the time one is least affordable.  Many parents find themselves having to overlap the family holiday with part of the school term.  Otherwise, there would be no prospect of a family holiday at all.  And the issue is all the more profound for children of separated parents, already under financial strain to run two homes and fund two family holidays, instead of one.

A survey of 2,000 parents conducted by a travel insurance firm in 2012 revealed the following about term-time holidays:

·                  55% of respondents had taken a child on holiday during the school-term;

·                  20% had sought permission for a term-time absence, which had been refused;

·                  12% had lied to take their child out of school for a term-time holiday.  The most common excuses deployed were illness, visiting sick relatives and attending a family wedding;

·                  57% of respondents took their children out of school for a term-time holiday because it was cheaper;

·                  32% were unable to afford a family vacation during the school holidays;

·                  26% said they, or their partner, could not get time off work during school holidays;

·                  43% would take their child out of class for a week for a term-time holiday.

The Legal Framework

What is the legal position?  Well, parents have a legal obligation to ensure their children receive what is described as a “suitable full-time education”.  A child must be educated when he or she is of “compulsory school age”.  This means between the ages of 5 and 17.  From 2015, compulsory school age will be expanded to include children between 5 and 18 (under the Education and Skills Act 2008).

Parents of a child of compulsory school age must register him or her for school (or else make arrangements for home-schooling).  Once registered, the parents have a legal responsibility to make sure the child actually attends school.  If there are truancy issues, the school and the Education Welfare Service (EWS) will provide support initially to address those. 

If truancy continues, the approach may become more punitive.  Parents may be issued with a Penalty Notice for unauthorised absences.  A Penalty Notice may be issued by the headteacher, the police or the Local Authority.  The fine is presently £60 if paid within 28 days, and £120 if paid within 42 days.  Parents who do not pay in time may be prosecuted. 

Other more serious measures include a School Attendance Order, an Education Supervision Order; and / or court prosecution.  The Department for Education (DfE) has published guidance on the support and sanctions available to reinforce the parental obligation to ensure school attendance.   

  

Authorised Absences

Headteachers are entitled to authorise pupils to be absent for up to ten days each year (and in rare situations, for longer periods).  This is intended to cover life’s unexpected eventualities that may result in a child being away:  illness, bereavement or inability to get to school due to bad weather.

However, many headteachers were and are approving absences under this power so that children could go on a family holiday.  This so incensed the Education Secretary that, last February, he announced a proposal to abolish the right of headteachers to authorise absences at all.  A spokesperson at the DfE was quoted as thus:

“Any time out of school has the potential to damage a child’s education.  That is why the government will end the distinction between authorised and unauthorised absence.  This is part of the government’s wider commitment to bring down truancy levels in our schools.  There will be stricter penalties for parents and schools.”

The DfE’s stance appears in the meantime to have mellowed.  It maintains that headteachers are not entitled to authorise absences for holidays during term-time.   However, there are no current plans to introduce a blanket-ban on headteachers approving term-time absences. 

The Schools’ Approach

Despite the government’s hard-line approach, it seems that some headteachers are adopting a more pragmatic and realistic stance.  This is borne out by the anecdotal experiences of our clients, by statistics and by local policies on term-time holidays.

Looking at the statistics, in Spring 2012, 25,525 half-days in primary school were missed due to authorised holidays (11.5% of all primary absences).  In secondary schools, the figure was 7,521 half-days for the same period (3.2% of all secondary absences). 

Exact polices differ from region-to-region, and from school-to-school.  Some examples of this variance include the following: 

·                   Melinda Tilley, Oxfordshire County Council Education Cabinet Minister (quoted in September 2012 in the Oxford Mail), says whether headteachers approve term-time holidays “… totally depends on what they’re doing with those days that they aren’t at school.

“If a child is going with its (sic) mum and dad to see his or her grandparents, that’s educational in a way and certainly something that’s good for the child.  It is so much cheaper to go on holiday during term-time and I think we should be tackling it from the other end because holidays, flights and everything else are way overpriced in school holidays.”

·                   the EWS for Shropshire Council has produced a leaflet highlighting the impact on a child’s education of absences during the school term.  It is clearly intended to discourage parents from arranging holidays during term-time. 

·                   Devon County Council has produced a form for parents designed to request a leave of absence during the school term, to include for a term-time holiday;

·                   Cambridgeshire County Council’s policy discourages parents from arranging family holidays during term-time.  It says absences will be authorised only in exceptional circumstances.  A holiday that is a unique, one-off never-to-be-repeated occasion which can only take place at the time requested might be exceptional.  Permission is likely to be refused if the reason given is that the holiday is cheaper in term-time.

These are just a random selection of guidelines from around the country.  Many are available online.  The common themes emerging are these:  term-time absences are generally discouraged; ultimately, the headteacher is entitled to exercise discretion to approve an absence of up to ten days; factors a headteacher might take into account when considering whether to approve a term-time absence include: 

o                    the child’s previous attendance history;

o                    the child’s age;

o                    the stage of the child’s education

o                    the time of year (does it clash with SATS, exams, etc?), and

o                    the nature of the trip (how is it exception?).

  

School Work and Catching-Up

There is no legal obligation on schools to set work for children absent during term-time.  The approach to this issue, as with authorising absences in the first place, varies from region-to-region.

For example, the East Riding of Yorkshire Council puts the obligation firmly on parents in its policy.  It is the parents who must, if term-time absence is authorised, ensure their child catches up on any missed school work. 

Milton Keynes Council has produced workbooks for children who will be away from school for extended holidays.  The focus is on making the holiday itself an educationally rewarding experience.  Parents are expected to help children complete the workbook during the vacation.

Term-Time Holiday Top Tips for Parents

1.                Find out now, well in advance of it becoming an issue, what your child’s school’s policy is on term-time holidays.

2.                If you are considering arranging a holiday during the school term, seek permission early, and before any booking is made and before any money changes hands.   

3.                Where parents are separated, any request for an authorised absence from school should be discussed (and ideally agreed) before the school is approached.

4.                If permission is given, be prepared to help your child catch-up on any school work missed.  Most schools, even though there is no positive obligation, will help with this.

5.                Consider whether and how the holiday can help further your child’s education and imagination.  The Milton Keynes’ workbooks provide some excellent pointers for how this can be done.

6.                Timing is everything:  important activities tend to congregate around end of term – exams, school plays and concerts, etc.  Have the school calendar very much in mind when considering when you might take a term-time holiday.

7.                Children get jet lag in the same way adults do.  If the holiday is a long-haul one, make sure you take into account the time it will take for your child to readjust on his or her return home.  Allow for a couple of days so that body clocks can recalibrate before returning to school.

8.                Be honest with your child’s headteacher.  If the holiday is planned to allow your child to be part of a family event – a wedding, an anniversary, or an important birthday – then say so.  This may prove the difference between an absence being authorised or not. 

9.                If permission for a term-time holiday is not given, consider the following to make a vacation during the school holidays more affordable: 

 

(a)               look for all-inclusive packages - with the cost of food, drink and entertainment included, costs will be relatively capped and there should be few surprises;

(b)               investigate less popular destinations – these may have all of the features and activities of more popular ones, but at a fraction of the cost;

(c)               compare air travel prices from all UK airports - driving or taking the train to a different airport might be significantly cheaper than flying from the nearest one to home. 

(d)               if in self-catering accommodation, go native!  Follow the locals’ lead, and shop at local markets and stores to help keep costs down. 

The closing message for parents is to ask your child’s headteacher for permission early.  This will ensure holiday plans are not ruined if an eleventh-hour request to approve a holiday is refused.