Yahoo Finance 'Should I take my child out of school to go on a cheap holiday?'
Dear Moral Money,
My five-year-old recently started at the local primary school and I’ve suddenly realised that for the next 13 years or so we will only be able to go on holiday during school holidays.
What makes it worse is that we haven’t been away for years. Like everyone, the pandemic put a stop to holidays and prior to 2020 we weren’t in a financial position to take the time off.
More and more of our son’s classmates seem to mysteriously disappear from school for a couple of days or even a week. Officially the child is ill, but it’s a pretty open secret in the playground that they’ve been taken out of school to save on the cost of a holiday.
At first I took the moral high ground but now I’m seriously thinking of joining them. A week’s trip for the three of us to Center Parcs in Suffolk would cost £2,500 in August, against £1,000 in mid-September.
My own parents would never have dreamt about taking me out of school, but everything is so much more expensive these days and this could be the only way we get a decent break.
In any case, a physically active holiday with two attentive parents is enriching in a way a classroom never could be.
I’m not suggesting we do this several times a year, and would never take him out during exam season. Is there really a problem if he misses a week of school? Everyone’s doing it and I don’t see why we should miss out.
- Ben L, Brighton
First thing’s first. It is a legal requirement for your child to attend school from compulsory school age. This is on December 31, March 31 or August 31 following their fifth birthday, whichever comes soonest. They must then start school the following term and stay until they are 16 and then until 18 in full-time education, or an apprenticeship or other kind of training.
Councils and schools can use various legal powers if your child misses school “without good reason”. You may be given a “parenting order” or made to pay a fine of £60 per parent, rising to £120 per parent after 21 days. In extremis, you could be prosecuted and given a fine of up to £2,500, given a community order – or even a jail sentence of up to three months.
Is it really worth the risk?
In reality, few parents are ever fined, let alone prosecuted. Of course, we could never recommend breaking the law, but we are all craving holidays after the past couple of years, and seeing other parents exploit the system to book cheap trips must be deeply frustrating if you’ve always followed the rules.
As you say, there is value for a child to gain from a trip to the Pyramids or Rome or even Center Parcs, especially if the choice is between one holiday, or none at all.
To feel vindicated you really do need to make sure the break enhances your son’s education and experiences: sitting on a beach for a week and filling up at an all-inclusive resort will not garner much sympathy.
Some readers might also make the point that the age of the child is vitally important. Missing a week of school at 15, with GCSEs looming, is surely a different kettle of fish to when your son is five.
If you don’t decide to go on moral grounds, would you consider alerting the authorities to other parents who do break the rules?
One thing I’m sure we all agree on is that children should be in school as much as possible. As many as 100,000 children are thought to be unaccounted for since schools reopened following the lockdowns. That is the real tragedy.
What do you think? Let us know in the comments section below and by emailing moralmoney@telegraph.co.uk.
You can also put any question to us (and anonymously) by using the email address above.
Last week's Moral Money: ‘A neighbour billed us for baking cakes for our street party – do I have to pay?’
Dear Moral Money,
My family recently moved into a quiet cul-de-sac. Last weekend we decided to throw a street party to get to know the new neighbours, as well as celebrate 70 years of Her Majesty’s reign.
I took it upon myself to do the lion’s share of the organising, including contacting our local council, knocking on my neighbours’ doors to invite them, and setting up the tables and bunting.
I’m glad to say the party went off without a hitch and all who attended were lovely. However, I woke up this morning to a note through our front door which startled me.
Everyone who attended brought along food or drinks to share out. We personally spent about £30 on nibbles and drinks, which were enjoyed by the whole street.
An older lady who lives on the other side of the street brought some cakes which she had baked herself. I tried a slice and my kids scoffed most of the rest.
To my alarm, when I woke up this morning I had received a bill through my letterbox for £18. It turns out this woman bakes for a living, and has thought it appropriate to charge me for her contribution.
Is this normal behaviour? We weren’t throwing a party for ourselves; it was a communal event. Should we feel obliged to pay her?
- KF, via email
What should have been a time of celebration for you and your family has been tarnished after your neighbour's penny pinching left a bad taste in your mouth.
Street parties are quintessentially community events. It is unlikely that anyone in attendance considered it to be "your" party, as thousands of similar events were taking place around the country.
It is also unlikely that your neighbour thinks it is acceptable to bill you for food which was shared out among the whole street, simply because you organised the event.
She may have sent the note in an act of passive aggression. Perhaps she thought that your children ate too much of the cake, and did not leave enough for the rest of the neighbourhood.
Readers may forgive for you for throwing the invoice in the bin. However, as you are new to the area, you may decide to take a more diplomatic approach.
You could perhaps send your neighbour a thank you note for coming and for bringing the baked good, without mentioning the bill.
Alternatively, you could simply move on and be more selective who you invite to events in future.
Poll results: Should our reader pay for the cakes?
Yes, her children obviously ate too much - 14pc
No, but send a thank you note - 43pc
No, throw the invoice in the bin - 37pc
Other - 6pc
