Leave of Absence
If a parent or carer wishes to request a period of leave of absence for their child, they are required to write to the Headteacher by completing the appropriate leave of absence form, which can be collected from the school office.
This should be done before any flights, holiday bookings or other arrangements are made.
There is no entitlement to time off in term time.
A school can only grant Leave of Absence if
.
As the Headteacher, I will only grant a leave of absence for exceptional circumstances. A holiday or travelling abroad is not exceptional.
There are 38 weeks in the year when school is open and 14 weeks (175 DAYS) when families can visit family overseas; go on holiday; travel, attend passport or visa appointments or attend non urgent medical appointments.
Other examples of unauthorised absence will be if a child does not attend because of:
So before you ask for leave of absence please consider… Is your request for leave of absence exceptional?
If the request is denied, the school will inform the parent of the reason and the request will be noted in the school (electronic) register.
Unauthorised leave of absence of more than one week
A child who has unauthorised leave of more than one week is of greater risk of being persistently absent by the end of the academic year.
A child is persistently absent if they have missed 38 sessions (19 days) out of the possible 380 sessions (190 days) in a school year. Their attendance is 90% or below at any point in the school year.
If your child is absent from school for five days or more without permission, you will have to pay a fine of £160 per parent per child (reduced to £80 if paid within 21 days).
If you receive a second fine for your child's unauthorised absence within 3 years, it will be £160 per parent per child, and you won't be able to pay the lower amount.
If your child has 3 or more unauthorised absences in 3 years, the local authority is likely to take you to court, which could result in a criminal record.
If your child is absent for 20 days or more
If your child will be away from school for 20 days or more, and the school does not agree to allow this, the local authority will take legal action through a prosecution in the Magistrates court instead of a penalty notice. This could result in you being fined and getting a criminal record. This is because parents must make sure their child attends school regularly.
You should not book any travel until you have completed a leave of absence form and the school has agreed to it. The school may ask you to change your travel plans if you have already booked.