High Court, holidays and you
You may have seen recent media coverage of a parent who won a High Court ruling about taking his daughter on holiday during term time.
This ruling has raised questions about parent’s rights to remove their child from school during term time to go on a family holiday.
At present the laws concerning a child’s attendance at school remain unchanged. There is an expectation that all children should attend school every day.
West Hatch expects pupils to maintain an attendance of above 95 per cent every academic year.
This means that any child missing more than nine and a half days for any reason would not meet this threshold.
Penalty notices will still be issued to parents who take their children out of school for unauthorised holidays or absence.
Absence from school is only granted in exceptional circumstance as per the school attendance policy which can be found on the school website
Following the court case, The Minister of State for Schools stated in his letter to schools:
“While family holidays are enriching experiences, the school year is designed to give families the opportunity for these breaks without having to disrupt their children’s education. It is for schools to consider the specific details and relevant context behind each request. Schools know their pupils best and are well placed to make those judgements."
West Hatch High School agrees wholeheartedly with this ethos and will continue to monitor and challenge low attendance.
However, we also like to reward excellent attendance and will be running two rewards programmes next year - one for each individual pupil and one for each form group.
Pupils will have an opportunity to win a form prize every term and be entered into an end-of-year prize draw for every term that they achieve 99-100 per cent attendance, excluding medical appointments.
More details will be given to the pupils during assembly in September.
Should you ever have any concerns about your child’s attendance contact Mrs
Nikola Bendall, the school Attendance Officer.
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