School Holidays
Please visit the Durham County Council website to view or download the school holidays dates for this academic year and next year for all community schools, special schools and voluntary controlled schools. Please note that voluntary aided (church) schools, foundation schools and academies may have set different dates and you should check with the school or academy to confirm their arrangements or view the PDF for schools not following the standard term and holiday dates.
School Holidays During Term Time
DFE: Working together to improve school attendance (Applies from: 19th August 2024) Includes information on holidays in term time.
We would like to take this opportunity to share some important changes to School Attendance Penalty Notices (DfE) from 19th August 2024, which every school must adhere to. This will affect the rules around penalty notices issued to parents for their child’s poor school attendance, including holidays taken during term time.
The DFE (Government) states:
Exceptional circumstances: All schools can grant a leave of absence for other exceptional circumstances at their discretion. In the case of schools maintained by local authorities and special schools not maintained by local authorities, it must be requested in advance by a parent who the pupil normally lives with. Schools are then expected to consider each application individually taking into account the specific facts and circumstances and relevant background context behind the request. If a leave of absence is granted, it is for the school to determine the length of the time the pupil can be away from school.
The DFE does not consider a need or desire for a holiday or other absence for the purpose of leisure and recreation to be an exeptional circumstance.
Durham LA: All pupils registered at school are expected to attend every day the school is open. Parents are advised to book leave during school holiday periods.
Information from Durham LA regarding Fixed Penalty Notices can be found on their website.
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