Something needs to be done’ about expensive term time holidays says councillor

A Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council (RMBC) report last week found that there has been a ‘steady rise’ in the number of children being educated at home since the pandemic.

As of August 31, there were 397 pupils in home education, compared to 200 in the year ending in 2020.

Councillor Tracey Wilson told a meeting of the council’s improving lives select commission today (October 31): “There seems to be a big mismatch between the enforcement of keeping people in school, and not letting [parents] take them out for holidays, and then we have this get out clause where parents can just take their children out of school.

“I’ve even had somebody say to me because they haven’t been able to take their children out of school for holidays, that they’re thinking of taking their children out of school now.”

Sarah Whitby, director of access to education said: “We are working hard to be able to capture richer data from parents and carers, and make sure we’ve got as much information as we can.

Councillor Victoria Cusworth added: “It is really important that children are in school in term time, but then something needs to be done about the cost of holidays in school holidays.

“Those spikes in cost just makes it unaffordable, and to pay a fine for a child not being in school is the more affordable option.”