Parents Face A Fine For Taking Children On Holiday In Term Time

An option being looked at, is fining parents who continue to take their children out of school in term time, to go on holiday they are doing this to take advantage of the cheaper holiday prices on offer.

At the moment, if you allow your child to truant you can face a penalty of up to £100. However Ministers are concerned that more often than not the courts offer conditional discharges and that this threat of fine is becoming meaningless.

The proposal comes after a review of school discipline and attendance by teacher and behavior expert Charlie Taylor. Approximately 4.5million days of school are unattended due to pupils going on holiday, holidays are significantly more expensive when taken during school.

Head teachers it is believed authorize 75% of holidays taken, and they are second to sickness when asked for a reason for absence.

The concern for Ministers is that if middle class children can miss school for a holiday, the signal will be that truancy is acceptable.

A source at the Department for Education said: ‘Any time out of school has the potential to damage a child’s education. That is why the Government will end the distinction between authorised and unauthorised absence.’

Under achievement at school is caused from high levels of truancy Ministers believe, this can mean that children from poorer backgrounds do not reach their full potential as teachers are left unwilling to enforce attendance.

They also believe that the parents should have tougher penalties imposed on them and they should be more and more vigorously enforced by the courts.

Brian Lightman, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, said: ‘The discretionary ten days has become a bit of a cultural expectation with parents viewing it as a right in some cases. It is not. Children only have one chance to get their education right and for schools to do their best for pupils. It is essential that children have good attendance.’

The National Association of Head Teachers said the measure would discourage parents from trying to put pressure on heads to sanction term-time holidays.

Research by travelsupermarket.com reveals prices increase by up to 42 per cent for a family of four taking a two-week trip to the Algarve during the school holidays.

A spokesman for the Department for Education said the proposals had been revealed as a result of leaked information and that they refused to comment on leaks.

Edwina Currie Says "Just Go Bankrupt"

Edwina Currie, a former politician was on BBC5 Live yesterday to tell people "Just go Bankrupt". Mrs Currie went on to say, you've "lived a very good life indeed" and that was why the caller was in debt.

Edwina was invited onto the show because she believed people were no starving in the UK because of the austerity cuts. The author and broadcaster clashed with Hayley Sanderson after the young mother claimed to regularly go hungry to feed her children.

Mrs Currie suggested that by living a life which was too good was to blame for being in debt. 'When the money was coming in, this sounds like there were two salaries coming in, and no savings, and life was being lived to the full and a very good life indeed,' said former junior health secretary Mrs Currie in a Radio 5 Live phone-in yesterday.

'But when that’s no longer the case, when there’s no longer money coming in, you have to evaluate whether you are going to be able to get back to the good life quickly or not. In which case, you are going to have to think about maybe declaring yourselves bankrupt.'

The young mother was then reduced to tears when she told Mrs Currie she had no credit cards, catalogue debts or satellite television, hit back.

'Edwina, I’ve never lived life to the full. I don’t go out every weekend. You’ve really upset me,' she said, bursting into tear.

'We don’t buy clothes on a weekly basis. We’ve never lived life to the full.

'I never said I’ve borrowed money from anywhere. I’m paying off old bills like council tax.'

Mrs Currie, who was a Northfield councillor from 1975 to 1986 and appeared on Strictly Come Dancing last year, had also probed Ms Sanderson on whether she had any pets.

Bankruptcy Advice

Mrs Currie went on to say "I hate to say this but you need to go Bankrupt". Huh?!!

That's crazy to provide this advice without a complete income and expenditure and evaluating a person's situation. The austerity cuts mean people struggle to survive and weathy, ignorant people like Edwina who are completely out of touch should not be invited onto radio programmes for subjects as sensitive as this.