It means that we probably wont have a proper holiday this year as looked at the June week and its was £2200+ for a basic week in Majorca for us and £1400 the week after, hopefully the Government will do something about that as well.
Interesting that on a thread where most people are complaining about over-interference from the government re: kids taken out of school, there seems widespread support for government interference on setting holiday prices.
In other words, we want a nanny state when it suits our agenda.
I don't care what parents do about their kids education. What does depress me is that so many people seem prepared to take children off to sunny climes at the very stage of their life when they are precisely most susceptible to the effects of the sun on young skin. It happened to me and I now suffer from skin cancer but there was no information available back in the day - now there's no excuse. Parents who take young kids of to Spain, etc should all hang their heads in shame.
Are you serious? I'm sure these parents who should be 'hanging their heads in shame' bought some sun cream and protected their kids. Very bizzare comment.
As for Gove he is a snivelling little toad pandering to what he perceives to be the popular Conservative viewpoint. As ever he is completely out of touch like all the LibLabCon.
Schools are run to meet targets, attendance percentages are one of criteria schools are judged on. No permission for trips will deter most parents from taking kids out if combined with threat of removal from school roll after 10 days unauthorised absence. LEA education welfare officers dish out the attendance fines for persistent non attendance which in reality would be below 80% attendance over a sustained period. School has no legal right to fine parents. How would such a fine be enforced? In the end a good kid is not going to be removed from roll for going on holiday. Schools need the exam passes of good kids to meet the targets. If your kid is a nightmare, well it may present an opportunity for school to get rid seeing as it is virtually impossible to permanently exclude. All about the stats really nowadays, doesn't matter which government is in they all read the figures but want to ignore the bigger picture.
Oops didn't mean to post that. The point I wanted to make was that school is not the be all and end all. A week missed is not going to harm your child's development to an unrecoverable degree. There are plenty of things, and I would say a holiday away with your family is one, which can be positive, learning experiences also.
I don't care what parents do about their kids education. What does depress me is that so many people seem prepared to take children off to sunny climes at the very stage of their life when they are precisely most susceptible to the effects of the sun on young skin. It happened to me and I now suffer from skin cancer but there was no information available back in the day - now there's no excuse. Parents who take young kids of to Spain, etc should all hang their heads in shame.
Are you serious? I'm sure these parents who should be 'hanging their heads in shame' bought some sun cream and protected their kids. Very bizzare comment.
Oh, I bow to your superior knowledge as will, I'm sure, my consultant dermatologist and plastic surgeon. Some cheapo sun cream and a lightweight t-shirt that doesn't stop UV rays will help I'm sure. Alternatively, this from the Macmillan website: UV light damages skin cells and can cause skin cancer. Episodes of overexposure to the sun or sunburn in childhood are important risk factors in the development of basal cell cancers. It’s likely that skin damage from UV light that occurs in childhood doesn’t show up until many years later.
Our local primary is currently revising its policies regarding this. It has become clear that Ofsted are getting very strict about attendance figures under their new inspection framework so any moves by Gove are nothing more than an extension of an I going process.
Essentially any school that falls below 95% attendance is looking for Ofsted to give then a hard time at their next inspection.
The local school where I am a governor has always treated each holiday request on its merits. Generally if a child attends regularly and is not struggling in their studies a holiday will be approved. Other children need to have a good reason to get the permission if they have then it is granted.
Our head is of the view that this is the best way forward and the governors agree. I have taken my children out during term time and it has had precisely no effect on their education. Both kids are at the top end of their classes and above average for their age.
To me the simple fact is that each child is different and government should trust schools to know their children and to make the decision that is best for their education. A new policy will not stop parents taking kids in school time it will simply demonise them and distance them from the school their kids attend increasing the likelihood of more important issues not being communicated to/from the school/parents.
I agree with the policy, as a parent myself I understand the financial strains but if you can't afford to go abroad in the holidays then you shouldn't go. Children have enough holiday time for parents to do something with them, even if it's a break in England, or the UK as a whole. As someone mentioned above what would parents say if Teachers started knocking off for a week to go abroad in term time because its cheaper?
The children will be the ones to suffer as they'll be having to catch up in their studies and around the later years in school this could cause unwanted pressure around exams and coursework.
So you cant take your kids on holiday cos they will get skin cancer . You cant let your kids ride a bike cos they will fall over . You cant let your kids play computer games cos they are too violent . You cant let your kids drink fizzy drinks cos it send them mental . You cant let your kids watch too much tv cos it damages their brain . You cant take your kids on planes cos it upsets people . You cant let take your kids swimming cos they might get a verruca . You cant let your kids go on a computer cos they will look at frankie .
how about trying to address the issue of expensive holidays a little - different regions of the country could have greater variation in their term dates, Scotland already does. Eg South-East does one thing, Midlands another etc - some could even go to 4 terms if they want. Wouldn't solve the problem with price discrepancies but it could alleviate it a bit.
Of course you also get unruly children who can get excluded for a week - their punishment comes later in life when they are cleaning toilets but most don't think that far ahead and will see it as a nice holiday. My idea of rewarding good behaviour and performance by selected days off (obviously some days will be more important than others - exams - key work) has some legs I think. It gives children a real incentive to do the best they can which may benefit them in the long run. It could just be a day rather than a week - say you would like to take your child to Legoland on a non busy school day - well if they do well and earn the day you can treat them and they will have a short term reward for their efforts which Children are more likely to relate to.
The point that kids can learn on holiday is also very valid. If they go abroad they can experience other values and cultures for instance.
I took mine out twice (with the permission of the school) as they had won competitions and had the opportunity to attend and participate in the season's finals night.
Otherwise what holidays we had were all during school holiday time.
All three of mine have been to or are presently at university so I like to think I was there or thereabouts in my attitude to this.
My experiences as the end of term approcaced is that my kids did little more than watch films, school trips, bowling etc so i would rather take advantage of a cheaper holiday and have them with me on holiday. Also they always seem to tack on teacher development days etc to the holidays. Would not of course take older children out of school what with exams etc. Perhaps each school/county should be given discretion to select their own holiday period thus each school will be different and creating far less competition and expensive holiday prices.
So you cant take your kids on holiday cos they will get skin cancer . You cant let your kids ride a bike cos they will fall over . You cant let your kids play computer games cos they are too violent . You cant let your kids drink fizzy drinks cos it send them mental . You cant let your kids watch too much tv cos it damages their brain . You cant take your kids on planes cos it upsets people . You cant let take your kids swimming cos they might get a verruca . You cant let your kids go on a computer cos they will look at frankie .
Classic message board thread. Not just Charlton Life but many forums end up like this with similar topics. Loads of high horses, generalizations, selfishness, blinkered and uninformed comment. There is never going to be answer acceptable to everyone on this but if ever a subject called for good old common sense to be used by parents and the authorities alike then this is it. However, any decisions made for some will always be used by others to fight their case and things will be spoilt for the many by the few. For the record, we took both our boys out of primary school when they were infants, one for 1 week and once for a fortnight. I honestly don't think they suffered, in fact of course they didn't and to suggest otherwise is folly. From what I see, and I'm not trying to be controversial, real education doesn't start until Year 10 - when GSCE's start. There seems to be a lot of faffing around before then. Both my boys are at one of the most successful (results wise) state schools in the country btw. In fact, without going off topic too much, I'd say a major problem in todays schools is the emphasis of Exam passes over education itself. We did take my eldest boy out of secondary school for a couple of days once but that was to play for CAFC U13's in a tournament in Spain so that's probably excusable.
But it isn't always the norm - so do you just say it should be or have some innovative ways to improve things?
i wish i did have. But to reward children for doing what they supposed to be doing, i'm not sure about. Also giving them the message that you can break rules if they don't suit you certainly is wrong.
So you cant take your kids on holiday cos they will get skin cancer . You cant let your kids ride a bike cos they will fall over . You cant let your kids play computer games cos they are too violent . You cant let your kids drink fizzy drinks cos it send them mental . You cant let your kids watch too much tv cos it damages their brain . You cant take your kids on planes cos it upsets people . You cant let take your kids swimming cos they might get a verruca . You cant let your kids go on a computer cos they will look at frankie .
Sorry kids , life is over
Love it!
Very good , whats left ? you can't even shove them up chimneys anymore ;-0
The local school where I am a governor has always treated each holiday request on its merits. Generally if a child attends regularly and is not struggling in their studies a holiday will be approved. Other children need to have a good reason to get the permission if they have then it is granted.
God forbid little Johnny misses 2 weeks of school. I mean how on earth can a child be expected to go on and make a life for themselves without possessing a basic knowledge of ox-bow lakes.
As for Gove he is a snivelling little toad pandering to what he perceives to be the popular Conservative viewpoint. As ever he is completely out of touch like all the LibLabCon.
Predictable as ever Len. Snivelling little toad?? Good grief, have you swallowed a copy of Socialist Worker from 1983?
Fundamental change is required to the education system in this country - witness record youth unemployment. Any move, however slight, has to be applauded by all but the most short sighted. Especially as it is only one minor (but a delight for the media) policy in a raft of improvements.
I imagine if we hadnt found ourself close to bankruptcy - and the admission on Andrew Marrs show from Millibean that Labour ''lost touch with the consensus of the people'' (a direct quote), and that ''some of our economic policies were, with hindsight, wrong'' we might have more funds available for the honourable intention to improve education for the good of the future of this country.
Comments
In other words, we want a nanny state when it suits our agenda.
As for Gove he is a snivelling little toad pandering to what he perceives to be the popular Conservative viewpoint. As ever he is completely out of touch like all the LibLabCon.
In the end a good kid is not going to be removed from roll for going on holiday. Schools need the exam passes of good kids to meet the targets. If your kid is a nightmare, well it may present an opportunity for school to get rid seeing as it is virtually impossible to permanently exclude.
All about the stats really nowadays, doesn't matter which government is in they all read the figures but want to ignore the bigger picture.
Some cheapo sun cream and a lightweight t-shirt that doesn't stop UV rays will help I'm sure.
Alternatively, this from the Macmillan website: UV light damages skin cells and can cause skin cancer. Episodes of overexposure to the sun or sunburn in childhood are important risk factors in the development of basal cell cancers. It’s likely that skin damage from UV light that occurs in childhood doesn’t show up until many years later.
Essentially any school that falls below 95% attendance is looking for Ofsted to give then a hard time at their next inspection.
The local school where I am a governor has always treated each holiday request on its merits. Generally if a child attends regularly and is not struggling in their studies a holiday will be approved. Other children need to have a good reason to get the permission if they have then it is granted.
Our head is of the view that this is the best way forward and the governors agree. I have taken my children out during term time and it has had precisely no effect on their education. Both kids are at the top end of their classes and above average for their age.
To me the simple fact is that each child is different and government should trust schools to know their children and to make the decision that is best for their education. A new policy will not stop parents taking kids in school time it will simply demonise them and distance them from the school their kids attend increasing the likelihood of more important issues not being communicated to/from the school/parents.
The children will be the ones to suffer as they'll be having to catch up in their studies and around the later years in school this could cause unwanted pressure around exams and coursework.
Sorry kids , life is over
The point that kids can learn on holiday is also very valid. If they go abroad they can experience other values and cultures for instance.
Otherwise what holidays we had were all during school holiday time.
All three of mine have been to or are presently at university so I like to think I was there or thereabouts in my attitude to this.
Loads of high horses, generalizations, selfishness, blinkered and uninformed comment. There is never going to be answer acceptable to everyone on this but if ever a subject called for good old common sense to be used by parents and the authorities alike then this is it.
However, any decisions made for some will always be used by others to fight their case and things will be spoilt for the many by the few.
For the record, we took both our boys out of primary school when they were infants, one for 1 week and once for a fortnight. I honestly don't think they suffered, in fact of course they didn't and to suggest otherwise is folly. From what I see, and I'm not trying to be controversial, real education doesn't start until Year 10 - when GSCE's start. There seems to be a lot of faffing around before then. Both my boys are at one of the most successful (results wise) state schools in the country btw. In fact, without going off topic too much, I'd say a major problem in todays schools is the emphasis of Exam passes over education itself.
We did take my eldest boy out of secondary school for a couple of days once but that was to play for CAFC U13's in a tournament in Spain so that's probably excusable.
i wish i did have.
But to reward children for doing what they supposed to be doing, i'm not sure about.
Also giving them the message that you can break rules if they don't suit you certainly is wrong.
Snivelling little toad?? Good grief, have you swallowed a copy of Socialist Worker from 1983?
Fundamental change is required to the education system in this country - witness record youth unemployment.
Any move, however slight, has to be applauded by all but the most short sighted. Especially as it is only one minor (but a delight for the media) policy in a raft of improvements.
I imagine if we hadnt found ourself close to bankruptcy - and the admission on Andrew Marrs show from Millibean that Labour ''lost touch with the consensus of the people'' (a direct quote), and that ''some of our economic policies were, with hindsight, wrong'' we might have more funds available for the honourable intention to improve education for the good of the future of this country.