Parents face fines over term-time holidays

From the end of the month head teachers will be able to fine parents who take their children out of school for holidays without authorisation.

But 18% of parents questioned in a survey for Teletext said they would ignore the penalty.

Four out of 10 said it would be cheaper to pay the fine, because they could save much more by booking a holiday outside of peak times.

More and more parents are taking their children out of school for holidays and the government wants to clamp down.

But many parents say they cannot afford to pay peak-time prices.

The poll, for which 500 parents were questioned, found that one in five parents had taken their children away during term-time for two weeks or more last year.

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Parent Penny Harrison is taking her two children away skiing in term-time.

"The flights are only �50 return - you can't even get down to London for that," she said.

"However, �100 fines might make me think again, that's quite a lot of money."

Competition

A recent survey for the Observer found holiday prices rose by between 20% and 100% during peak-holiday periods.

The government argues that children's education is disrupted by term-time holidays, although parents are entitled to take their children out of school for up to 10 days a year.

The UK travel industry insists the country's holiday market is among the cheapest in the world and that prices are fair.

The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has rejected a call from the Liberal Democrat MP Malcolm Bruce to investigate the pricing policy of holiday companies.

A spokesman for the OFT told BBC News Online: "It's a normal feature of markets that prices will rise due to increased demand.

"Competition between tour operators should ensure that prices are set at a competitive level at times of such increased demand."

However the OFT said it would be interested to receive any evidence of any unlawful agreements or abuse of dominance by holiday firms.

Malcolm Bruce was disappointed by the OFT's decision.

"The relatively short breaks, combined with high demand, are creating a feeding frenzy for holiday companies," he said.

He had argued that the market was being distorted because school holidays are set through public policy, and parents cannot pick and choose holiday dates as freely as other groups.

A spokesman for ABTA, the Association of British Travel Agents, said the group was not surprised by the decision, because the UK's package holiday market had been investigated in 1997 by the Monopolies and Mergers Commission and had been found to be offering good value for money.

"The British package holiday market is among the cheapest in the world. The average profit margin is only 3%," he said.

He said holiday companies had to pay more for hotel rooms in peak times when demand was high and "had no choice but to pass this on to customers".

Head teachers are being given the power to fine parents who take children out of school without permission.

Relationships

But in reality, few will want to take that action, say head teachers' leaders.

David Hart, the general secretary of the National Association of Head Teachers, said: "We have yet to come across a head who wants to impose fines themselves.

"That would undermine the relationship between schools and parents."

He said heads would report persistent offenders to the local councils, who could issue the fines.

Head teachers have discretion to allow parents to take their children out of school for up to two weeks a year.

"But the majority of heads frown on this, because it sends a bad message to the children and the rest of the school, " he said.