A FAMILY has jumped on the latest TikTok trend where they brag about being fined for taking their son out of school in term time in order to get a cheap holiday.
Going abroad during the school holidays can be extortionate, as holiday companies ramp up prices, due to increased demand.
Because of this, parents may be tempted to take their children out of school during term time to save some cash – even though it can lead to a fine.
One family who appeared unfazed by the rules is the Sanderson Family, who shared a video on TikTok of their reaction to being fined by school.
In the video, the mum, dad and young son can be seen standing up in the living room, each reading a letter, presumably informing them of the fine.
“Receiving fines from school for taking kids on holiday”, the caption reads.
The family then proceeded to throw the letters into the air and dance around excitedly to Fireball by Pitbull.
“But wait”, the family said, “we saved thousands of pounds by doing so”.
The trio then each grabbed a suitcase and skipped off out of the house, insinuating that the fine hasn’t bothered them at all.
After the video was posted the family revealed in the comments they are off on a trip to Turkey, whilst their son should be in school.
But they later shared the whole skit was a joke.
If you want to take your child out of school for a holiday in term time, you must make an application to the headteacher.
Permission will only be granted in exceptional circumstances, and if it isn’t you could face a fine.
The fines currently stand at £60 per parent for each child, and this increases to £120 if the fine is not paid within 21 days.
If you do not pay within 28 days, you could risk prosecution.
As of September 2024, the fines will rise by £20, to £80 per parent – and if a parent breaches a two fine in three year period, prosecution could be considered.
“Where does all this money go?” the family asked in the video.
When children are fined by the school, the money goes to the local authority to cover the cost of administrating their system and to fund attendance support.
Any extra money is returned to the government.
The family’s TikTok, which was posted under the username @thesandersonfamil, has likely left many open-mouthed, as it has racked up more than 400,000 views on the video sharing platform.
TikTok users raced to the video’s comments section to share their thoughts, and opinions were divided.
One person said: “Family time is so important, one week isn’t going to affect your child’s education.
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“Hope you have a great holiday”.
Another person said: “My son had ‘tonsillitis’ for 2 weeks in February in Egypt.
“We saved £2500 and it was 30 degrees”.
A third person said: “The fines should be higher”.
A fourth person added: “It’s not about the money, it’s about your child not being able to pass their GCSE’s.”
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HOLIDAYS IN TERM TIME - THE RULES
FINES for parents who take their children out of school during term time are due to rise by £20 to £80 per child from September in England.
But while it’s very much a postcode lottery with some local authorities imposing penalties automatically, others issue none at all.
In England, fines are currently £60 per child if paid within three weeks, and £120 if paid within four. From September this will rise to £80 and £160.
In an attempt to create a more consistent approach, new guidelines will tell schools to consider applying a fine after a pupil has missed five days of class without the head teacher’s permission.
The laws – which will make clear fines should only be used where attendance interventions have failed – will kick in from August in time for the next school year starting in September.
Should a parent receive a second fine for the same child within any three-year period, this will be charged at the higher rate of £160.
Fines per parent will be capped to two within any three-year period. Once this limit has been reached, other action like a parenting order or prosecution will be considered.
If you’re prosecuted because your child hasn’t been attending school, you could get a fine of up to £2,500.