St Edward’s RC Primary, a Voluntary Academy

IMPORTANT INFORMATION REGARDING HOLIDAYS IN TERM TIME.

The law gives no entitlement to parents to take their child on holiday in term time.  Head Teachers may not grant any holidays or other absences during term time unless there are exceptional circumstances.

Holidays in term time cannot be considered to be authorised absences, so they will always be unauthorised absences (There is, however, a discretionary power held by Head Teachers to authorise absence in exceptional circumstances).

Section 444(A) of the Education Act 1996 empowers the local authority to issue Penalty Notices in cases of unauthorised absence from school. This means that when a pupil has unauthorised absence of 10 sessions (5 days) or more, in any term (where no acceptable reason has been given for the absence) or if their child persistently arrives late for school after the close of registration, their parents or carers may receive a Penalty Notice of £80 per parent per pupil if paid within 21 days rising to £160 if paid within 28 days. The penalty notice will need to be paid in full before 28 days of the notice being served. Failure to pay a penalty notice may result in prosecution.

Our school works with parents to provide the best education for each child and believes that regular attendance throughout the year is essential to every child’s success and fulfilment.

We expect you to consult the school before booking holidays or before making any plans that will involve your child’s absence from  school.