Calls for ban on term time holidays to be scrapped

The ban on term-time holidays from school should be scrapped so head teachers can take a “common-sense approach”, say council leaders.
Since September last year, local authorities in Britain have been obliged to fine parents who take children out of school for unauthorised absences.
But the Local Government Association says the new rules do not recognise the complexities of family life and also the cost of family holidays to top destinations such as Majorca. A Department for Education spokeswoman said heads still had flexibility.
Until last September, heads could grant up to 10 days’ leave a year for family holidays in “special circumstances”.
But now head teachers can grant absence outside school holidays only in “exceptional circumstances”.