ALMOST ONE IN 10 PUPILS MISS LESSONS FOR UNAUTHORISED HOLIDAYS
Term-time holidays have consistently been in the spotlight since a Government crackdown on school absence in 2013
Almost one in 10 children miss lessons without the school's permission to go on holiday, figures show.
Across two terms in the last academic year, more than 630,000 youngsters were taken out for an unauthorised family trip, according to data published by the Department for Education.
With the Christmas holidays coming to an end, many families will be turning their thoughts towards potential summer breaks.
It has been argued that many parents consider taking their child out of class for family trips due to the high cost of travelling during school holidays.
But ministers argue that missing just one day of school can affect a child's education and school leaders say it is important that children miss "as little time as possible".
The government's figures show that in the autumn term of 2018 and the spring term of 2019, 631,108 pupils in England had one or more sessions (half a day) of unauthorised absence due to family holidays.
There were 7,057,021 pupils on school rolls during these terms - meaning that around nine percent (8.9%) missed at least half a day of lessons due to unauthorised trips.
Published: by Radio NewsHub