Are parents, the proverbial hanky on the rope.?

[Manwithnoname]

Taking children out of school for a holiday = a far cheaper holiday but a fine can be imposed. (plus other threats ?)

Taking children on holiday during term time = rip off travel agents who are allowed to get away with it. Non government intervention = couldn`t care less.

All in all its the parents who are the victims of it all. Agree/Disagree

[jno]

that's the market economy for you. You could say that school-holiday prices are the real ones and they have to offer discounts to get people to go at other times. You really expect the government to set holiday prices?

[Manwithnoname]

Jno I dont expect the government to do anything to help anybody except themselves & overseas dictators.

As for the great British public, they can go & whistle.
Yes you could go down the road you suggest but rip off Britain tends not to favour its own.

[Bobbisox]

I think the Travel companies want a good swift kick up the bum , holding people with a young family to ransom during school holidays

[pretty_snowdrop]

I took my kids out of school for 2 days after the Easter holidays because the flights were £700 cheaper. Of course it's the parents that suffer, but remember teachers/teaching staff suffer too. I suppose it's all to do with supply and demand, if we all refused to pay then perhaps the travel companies would stop ripping us off.

[albaqwerty]

If you take them out of school and convince the school they will benefit from an 'educational' trip, then there shouldn't be a problem

[karenmac60]

The thing is, a holiday's a luxury. Everyone seems to think it's a right these days and if they can't afford to go then it's some sort of violation of their human rights. It's dearer during the school holidays because that is when people want to go and that is how the companies make their money - they're not charities. (btw, I'm a parent who hasn't been on holiday in a looooong time)

[Manwithnoname]

My point entirely snowdrop. A few quid yes but £700 speakes volumes. I also agree that by not paying these over charging parasites would be a good thing.

Hello Bobbi Pet. The problem is who will kick these obscene money grabbing immoral exploiters up the backside.

[Manwithnoname]

Yes Karen they are not charities but they have a licence to rip off customers.People who work hard all year & go without certain things in an effort to afford a holiday are being ripped off & kids are used as a lever to justify their exploitation.

Whchever way, its the parents who are the victims.

[sherrardk]

When I was still teaching I used to be amazed at the attitude of some of my colleagues to students going on holiday in term time - if that was the only time the families could afford I felt it was more important than the lessons missed (unless it was exam time of course). If I had the money now, I would take my children out of school to go on holiday rather than not go at all.

[albaqwerty]

Karen., I hear what you say. a holiday IS a luxury when it's away from home. However, you (not you personally btw) can have days out with picnics etc, weather permitting.

The hospitality industry is as bad, they put their prices up for basic B&B even.

[karenmac60]

I can't understand why people go without and struggle all year just for a week abroad. Why go? I'd rather have a little bit extra each month so I could actually enjoy my life than slog all year for a week that might all go horribly wrong (airline strikes, bad weather, the whole family living in one another's pockets and inevitably falling out). Why is it so important that everyone have a holiday away? What's wrong with staying home and getting out and about? Then no one could rip you off - they can only do it if you let them.

[karenmac60]

But no one seems to see it as a luxury anymore Alba.

[albaqwerty]

^^ agreed

[Manwithnoname]

Yes thats right Karen it is their choice,& its no longer deemed a luxury however, I still get wound up about people of this country who are ripped off as a divie right by these companies & even more so when they allow it to happen.

We went to Ibiza in the 1990s & I would never ever go on a cattle laden package holiday again

[New Judge]

It must come as no surprise to people with children that holidays during term time are less expensive that during the school holidays. It has been so forever, not for just the past few years. It is one of the things that parents must take on board.

Holiday companies are in business to make money. Their product is not one of life’s essentials and the government has no business interfering in its pricing structure. I read an article a few weeks ago which addressed the increase in Air Passenger Duty. It said that “hard pressed families would have to pay an extra £xxx on a holiday for four to Florida”. Perlease! “Hard pressed” and “holidays to Florida” do not sit in the same sentence.

As for taking children out of school: it is against the law to do so without permission and most schools, under instructions from their local authorities, are adopting a harder line on granting permission. This is the way forward. Taking children out of school interrups their education, but also impinges on that of their classmates when teachers have to give extra help to enable the absentees to catch up.. Further, many children will see no difference between one classmate taking two weeks out to go to Majorca and another one taking two weeks truanting round the local shopping centre.

Finally, if you really want any further convincing, look at the number of parents of children from State schools who take their children out of school (cost to parents: £0) and then the number of parents of children from fee-paying schools who do so (cost to parents £150-£600pw). You will find that the former outnumber the latter by about 25 to 1.

Parents must accept that their children must attend school for the entire term and must tailor their holidays accordingly. A fortnight in Florida is not “educational” and they should not kid themselves that it is to justify their child

[New Judge]

...their child being absent.

[Count-A-Strong]

Well said NJ If you don't like living in a capitalist society bugger off to Russia.

[welshlibranr]

I have no problem at all with kids being taken out of school for a family holiday, if they could not do this, then they may not get a holiday at all, as it's so very expensive in the school holidays!.........in fairness, they are spending quality time with their family, and experiencing other cultures too, and so it's all character building!............got to be good!..............

[ummmm]

My children's school have never denied permission to take them out in term time.

My kids don't miss school though.....we didn't have a holiday last year and youngest got 100% attendance.

[New Judge]

No, you may not have any such problem, welshlibranr. It is the schools that have to provide the additional resources and the children who do attend full time that have the problem.

Holidays are more expensive during school holidays because the demand is greater. Children are given around fourteen weeks each year to spend “...quality time with their family, and experiencing other cultures”.

One other aspect often overlooked is that people who prefer to take their holidays without the dubious delights of being surrounded by children should be able to do so by taking their breaks during term time. At present they cannot depend on their requirements being fulfilled. This is by no means as important as my earlier points, but is nonetheless another consideration.