Holidays and Absence

Holiday  absence.

From the 1st September 2013 the law has changed and there is no longer any entitlement to take your child on holiday during term time.  The head teacher of Our Lady's can now only grant leave of absence in exceptional circumstances.  An application has to be made in advance by a parent/carer with whom the pupil normally resides. Retrospective consent will not be granted.
An application for ‘leave of absence’ can be obtained from the school office. The headteacher must be satisfied that the circumstances are exceptional and warrant the granting of leave. Parents/carers may be issued with a penalty notice or prosecuted for taking their child/ren out of school without authorisation from the headteacher. 
From the 1st September 2013, the timescale for paying a penalty notice issued in respect of unauthorised absence from school has reduced. Parent/carers will have 21 days to pay £60 per parent/carer per child. If this is not paid within 21 days, the fine increases to £120 per parent/carer per child. Failure to pay after 28 days will result in legal proceedings in the magistrates court. 
Although we appreciate that the new law removing the entitlement to holidays in term time may cause some inconvenience to some parents, the school is required to implement these legal changes. 
We would like to take this opportunity, on behalf of Our Lady's to thank you for your full support in this matter in helping your child establish good attendance and valuing the education they receive.
Yours sincerely,
Mrs P McGuffie

Leave of Absences are to be requested by using the following form: