Parents seek judicial review of term-time holiday crackdown
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Version 0 of 1. Campaigners are seeking permission for a judicial review of the government's crackdown on parents taking their children out of school during term time. The decision by the Department for Education (DfE) last September to remove the discretion of headteachers in England to approve absences in "special circumstances" provoked an outcry, with many parents arguing they were priced out of enriching overseas trips during peak holiday season. Parents Want a Say founder Craig Langman said: "For us to only be allowed to take kids on holiday when the government or school say we can is a breach of family life. We have found a family which we can take to a judicial review which we are hopeful we'll win." The group is keen to emphasise that cost is not the only reason for taking children on holiday during term time. It says that workers in key professions, including people in the NHS, police force, military and public transport face restrictions on when they can take leave. The test case involves a couple from Sheffield who have been refused permission by his headteacher to take their son, who has Asperger's syndrome, on holiday next month. "He gets frightened when the weather's too hot and places are too crowded," said Langman, "but the headteacher didn't even want to consider that." John Hemming, Liberal Democrat MP for Yardley, in Birmingham, is the chair of Parents Want a Say and has argued that government policy "is reducing the amount of quality time they spend together". Langman, from Nuneaton, Warwickshire, set up a petition on the website 38 Degrees website in September to reverse the changes made by the government after the DfE said headteachers would only be able to grant absences for "exceptional circumstances". Parents who do not have permission for their child's absence from school face a fine of £60 per pupil, per parent, which can rise to £2,500 and a three-month jail term if they refuse to pay. More than 20% of parents say they have been fined for taking their children on unauthorised holidays during the school term, a survey published last month found. After getting more than 120,000 signatures in only a few days, the petition was sent to the DfE but Langman said it was ignored. He was moved to set up Parents Want a Say after being inundated with emails from parents who shared his concerns. While the group's initial focus is on changing the policy on term-time absences, Langman says it is only one of many areas where parents feel that they are not consulted in decisions about their children's education. Ultimately, he says, Parents Want a Say will branch into other issues, aiming to "bridge the gap between parents and education". A DfE spokesperson said: "We recognise the challenges facing parents to fit holidays around their jobs and that's why we are giving all schools the flexibility to set their own term times so they can change term dates to ones that work for their pupils and families. Many schools are already taking advantage of this, like the David Young Academy, in Leeds, which runs a seven-term year. "Evidence shows allowing pupils to regularly miss school can be hugely detrimental to a child's education. The most recent full-year figures show we are making progress, with 130,000 fewer pupils regularly missing school under this government. We have also increased fines for truancy and encouraged schools to address the problem earlier." |