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[blackviper90210]

What saddens me is the number of adults who are either illiterate, or extremely poor when it comes to spelling.

How the hell can a child go through more than a decade at school and yet not have the ability to read and write to a reasonable standard.

Do children not read to their teachers these days?....

Back in the sixties we all had our own individual 'spelling book'........with twenty new words to learn each week.

Err do they read to their parents might be a better question first!

my lil girl does every night. she`s in keystage 2 but sits with ks5 & 6 with her spellings. i do push her though. 

Ditto, my boy started reception school in September and has come on leaps and bounds. He loves coming home and telling us what new sounds and words he has learnt. After playtime dinner and bath, he sits and reads his book to me and we go through his "rocket words" that he has to learn, before moving onto the next stage.

I'm making the most of his enthusiasm and lust for learning as I'm sure over time that may well diminish. In the meantime, I'm giving him all the encouragement and time he wants 

We must be doing something right then Dave. 

We can only try. If we give them the time and energy to help them and show them that this is the way to go from an early stage, then at least we can say we tried our best at the start. It's up to them, with more encouragement, to keep up the hard work!!

My 2 eldest, one is now in college and the other is doing his final exams ready to leave school this year.... they haven't done too bad considering!!

[Field Marshal Dr. Opti]

When I was a nipper nothing less than the loss of a major limb or decapitation would get me a day off school.

Belly ache or, 'Mom I don't feel too good' just didn't work.

[Marks DTM Calib]

Excactly the same here, My youngest (7) reads to me, my eldest (9) reads a lot to (does spellings every week which at target'd at 13+ and a few I cant spell!), all at home and they are encouraged to do so.

Last night we went to the school xmas play and the youngest was a narrator, due to one of the others not turning up, she also had to read his part without any practice....it was perfect, no pauses, confusion or anything (very proud), just confident as she knows she can do it.

But its as much home as school.....and that is where some fail thier children.

I have seen no evidence of a failing education setup

[Varche]

When I was a nipper nothing less than the loss of a major limb or decapitation would get me a day off school.

Belly ache or, 'Mom I don't feel too good' just didn't work.

Me too. I remember the bad winter of (I think) 1966. Our hamlet was snowed in for about 3 weeks. First day - no school bus so I had to walk on my own through 3 miles of snow drifts and blizzards. Catch the public bus and then walk the last two miles. There was no snow at school whatsoever. I got the cane for being late (10 a.m.) and lying about the snow. Then in the evening I had to walk the 3 miles home in yet more driving snow. Had to do that every day for the next 3 weeks of school days.

[aaronjb]

In my day it was uphill both ways and six foot snowdrifts in August, damnit.

[Field Marshal Dr. Opti]

When I was a nipper nothing less than the loss of a major limb or decapitation would get me a day off school.

Belly ache or, 'Mom I don't feel too good' just didn't work.

Me too. I remember the bad winter of (I think) 1966. Our hamlet was snowed in for about 3 weeks. First day - no school bus so I had to walk on my own through 3 miles of snow drifts and blizzards. Catch the public bus and then walk the last two miles. There was no snow at school whatsoever. I got the cane for being late (10 a.m.) and lying about the snow. Then in the evening I had to walk the 3 miles home in yet more driving snow. Had to do that every day for the next 3 weeks of school days.

These are the sort of life events that my 92 year old mother would describe as 'character building'......

[MR MISTER]

I remember it being minus 27°F one year. My school was over 100 miles away and it took me and my brother three weeks to walk there. We nearly died of starvation and exposure on the way. The teacher thrashed us when we arrived and sent us straight home.
When we got there, after being away for nearly a week, our parents had moved.
Kids don't know they're born these days.

[LC0112G]

Sanction?, 100 pounds fine. Saved on holiday? Probably five hundred pounds.
What can one do?

£10,000 sanction, take the kids off the parents and then shoot the parents.

Er.. I came over all TB for a minute there I think.

Seriously, though, £100 is nothing to an awful lot of people (and the world to some!) so clearly the fine needs to be bigger and the threat greater - parents held culpable under the thread of serious (criminal) sanctions, perhaps?

Since 2006 at least, the requirements have been that to take a child out of school required a prior written request to, and approval by the Headmaster. The limit was 10 days in any school year. ref section 7 of "The Education (Pupil Registration) (England) Regulations 2006"

On 1st Sept 2013 the requirements were tightened. Absense from school may now only be granted in "exceptional circumstances". Ref "The Education (Pupil Registration) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2013". To me that means death/funeral of a close relative or similar, and definatley does not mean "coz holidays are cheaper".

It is and always has been a criminal sanction. Part of the problem is that teachers/headmasters don't attempt to enforce the law. If I were a headmaster I would reply to every request for time off on holiday with a "No - and if you ignore me I will do my uttmost to ensure you are prosecuted to the full extent of the law and receive a criminal record". And quote the relavent sections of the acts of parliament as backup.

I get really pi55ed off when kids turn up on my specialy chosen ski holiday weeks when the little barstuards should be at school 

[Field Marshal Dr. Opti]

I remember it being minus 27°F one year. My school was over 100 miles away and it took me and my brother three weeks to walk there. We nearly died of starvation and exposure on the way. The teacher thrashed us when we arrived and sent us straight home.
When we got there, after being away for nearly a week, our parents had moved.
Kids don't know they're born these days.

That is SFA.......because when I was a lad...........

[MR MISTER]

Headteachers are required to report these incidents to the local authority, it's up to them what the sanction should be. Heads can impose fines, nothing further.

Sorry..that's in reply to the post before last. Fickin Opti interrupting again.

[LC0112G]

Headteachers are required to report these incidents to the local authority, it's up to them what the sanction should be. Heads can impose fines, nothing further.

Sorry..that's in reply to the post before last. Fickin Opti interrupting again.

No. It's a criminal offence, and has been since 2006 at least. It's up to the courts to decide punishment for criminal acts. Parents would think twice about taking kids out of school if they knew they were going to be hauled before the beak over it.

The fault is with the Teachers, Headmasters and LEA's for not implementing the law properly. Parliament has passed the laws, but no-one want's to enforce them.

[MR MISTER]

Headteachers are required to report these incidents to the local authority, it's up to them what the sanction should be. Heads can impose fines, nothing further.

Sorry..that's in reply to the post before last. Fickin Opti interrupting again.

No. It's a criminal offence, and has been since 2006 at least. It's up to the courts to decide punishment for criminal acts. Parents would think twice about taking kids out of school if they knew they were going to be hauled before the beak over it.

The fault is with the Teachers, Headmasters and LEA's for not implementing the law properly. Parliament has passed the laws, but no-one want's to enforce them.

No. Heads and teachers don't have legal departments to enforce anything,  local authorities do and it's the council's legal team who decide whether to prosecute. Most won't go that far, a written warning is issued usually.
But, then again, what do you expect when sex offenders are receiving police cautions?

[LC0112G]

Headteachers are required to report these incidents to the local authority, it's up to them what the sanction should be. Heads can impose fines, nothing further.

Sorry..that's in reply to the post before last. Fickin Opti interrupting again.

No. It's a criminal offence, and has been since 2006 at least. It's up to the courts to decide punishment for criminal acts. Parents would think twice about taking kids out of school if they knew they were going to be hauled before the beak over it.

The fault is with the Teachers, Headmasters and LEA's for not implementing the law properly. Parliament has passed the laws, but no-one want's to enforce them.

No. Heads and teachers don't have legal departments to enforce anything,  local authorities do and it's the council's legal team who decide whether to prosecute. Most won't go that far, a written warning is issued usually.
But, then again, what do you expect when sex offenders are receiving police cautions?

Yes, and no. Teachers and Heads need to report it to the LEA. If the LEA then won't prosecute, then it's them that at at fault. It requires all three parties (Teacher, Head and LEA) to act correctly otherwise the offender gets 'let off'. The laws to prosecute are in place, but unless you use them they are just a waste of paper.

LEA's do not have the legal authority to issue a fine for a criminal offence - only a court can fine you. Assuming they are vaguely legal (which is a big assumption), they are probably offering something akin to a Speeding NIP/COFP in an attempt to save money by not going to court. If that's what happening then it's wrong. If the LEA decided to take (say) 1 in 10 cases before the magistrates for a first offence, then how many parents would risk it once the fist few cases ended up on the front page of the local rag? Do you feel lucky punk, do you 

[MR MISTER]

Yes...that's what I said.

[LC0112G]

Yes...that's what I said.

Ok - so maybe your OH should serve a Freedom of Information request on her LEA asking

1) How many reports has the LEA received of unauthorised absence from school?
2) How many of these were repeat offenders?
3) How many of the cases in 1) and 2) received a warning letter?
4) How many of the cases in 1) and 2) have been issued a 'fine'?
5) How many prosecutions have been attempted?

Then when you get the answer, go to the press and try to embarras the LEA into doing their effing job.

My bet is the answer to question 5 is a big fat zero.