Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson plans to confront the travel industry about the high costs of school holidays amid a crisis of parents taking kids out of school
The Education Secretary plans to confront the travel industry about the high costs of school holidays amid a crisis of parents taking kids out of school.
Bridget Phillipson said she will “look at what the options are” in discussions with Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander. She made the comments as she vowed to crackdown on the number of children missing class which has exploded since the pandemic.
Last year more than 443,000 – a record number – of fines were issued to parents taking their children out of school during term time to go on holiday, a 53% increase since before the Covid pandemic. School absence fines in England went up from £60 to £80 in September, rising to £160 for parents who get a second fine for the same child within a three-year period.
But many parents say they are not deterred by fines as it is still much more cost-effective to pay a fine than take their kids on holiday when prices soar during the school break. Asked if she’ll speak to the travel industry about the high costs, Ms Phillipson told the Mirror: “Yes, I do believe that we need to look at what the options might be.
READ MORE: School seen as ‘optional’ by some families – and fines aren’t working, union warns
“They’re not easy, and if they were, action might have followed more rapidly than this. But I do understand that families want the chance to have a holiday, the importance of that time together as a family, but I’m afraid that can’t be during term time.“ Asked if she had spoken to the travel industry yet, she added: “It’s something I intend to discuss with the Transport Secretary.”
Ms Phillipson defended the use of fines when she spoke to the Mirror on Wednesday at an attendance conference at Mulberry Academy Shoreditch in east London. The event was part of nine regional conferences held across the country this month to bring together school staff and education experts to discuss the challenge of attendance.
Some 1.6million – or one in five kids – are persistently absent, meaning they miss roughly one day of school every other week/around 10% or more of possible school sessions. Ms Phillipson said there were some “green shoots of recovery” in recent stats, with persistent absence decreasing from 20.6% to 18.8% compared to the same point last year. She said she did “understand the concerns” that parents have in improving their child’s attendance when they don’t want to go to school.
“I know it can be really hard for parents when they’re supporting children with mental health challenges, or perhaps children with SEND (special educational needs and disabilities),” she said. “The first approach that any school should take is around support for children, where they are struggling.”
But she continued: “When it comes to time out of school for holidays and for non essentials, I’m afraid parents simply shouldn’t be withdrawing their children for holidays during term time and fines do remain an important part of the system. The reason I say it matters is I understand the pressures that families are under but children do need to be regularly in school.
“It’s not just about that individual child, but about our responsibilities to the whole school community, because what I hear from teachers is that when children are in and out of class, or where they’re taken out where it’s not necessary, that damages the learning of all children within the class, because the teacher has to cover all ground, has to cover material again. So it’s not just about the impact on the individual child, it’s about the impact on the whole class as well.”
Ministers have faced calls to introduce limits on how much travel firms can put up their prices in the school holiday. Teaching unions have argued that better regulation could help create more balance in the system and stop parents getting penalised and ripped off during the holidays. A study by the University of Bath last year(2024) found that absence rates are 22% higher on Fridays compared to the rest of the year in secondary schools, and 17% higher in primary schools. Researchers said they found that Friday absences “are more common in weeks leading up to bank holidays or half-term breaks, suggesting that families might be extending their holidays”.
Daniel Kebede, general secretary of the National Education Union, welcomed Ms Phillipson’s comments. “The price hikes families have to fork out for if they want to take a break during the school holidays has long been an issue,” he said. “It is good to hear that Bridget Phillipson is considering tackling travel companies and ending this rip off that penalises those with school age children. This is something that will greatly reduce families taking children out of school for term time holidays.”
Pepe Di’Iasio, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, said: “Everyone understands the importance of children being in class during term time. At the same time, it is only natural for families to want to go on holiday and the increased prices outside of term time are a barrier for many.
“Schools are caught in the middle through no fault of their own, with leaders often required to issue fines which only result in deepening tensions with parents. We are calling for ministers to engage with the travel industry to address the excessive cost of holidays during school breaks and welcome signs that they intend to do so.”
The Association of British Travel Agents said: “We appreciate that the price of holidays can be more expensive during school breaks than in term time. Our members do strive to provide holidays at competitive prices, as well as offering free child places and other money-saving incentives for early bookers.
“The price, as in most commercial sectors, is a function of supply and demand. Holidays are part of a global market; many other countries have school holiday periods similar to those in the UK, meaning that all these countries are competing for holidays with the same suppliers which affects the price.“
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