Did You Know Family Holidays During School Terms Are Against the Law?

That family trip to the Gold Coast during school time might have been, gasp, illegal!

The Education Department in Western Australia has hit out against parents who take their children on holidays during the middle of school semesters.

Alan Dodson, education department director, told a parliamentary inquiry last month that wealthier parents think it's okay for their children to miss bouts of school to go on family vacations.

"Even in the mid to high socio-economic area, we have an increase in the number of families who think it is OK to take their kids on holidays, and fly-in, fly-out issues, and all the rest, where the holiday thing has become a big thing," he said.

The department's director-general, Sharyn O'Neill, also explained that it's actually against the law for parents to keep their child from attending school without a valid reason. (BTW: A birthday is apparently not a valid reason.)

"It is the law, there is a requirement, and the onus is actually on the parent or the caregiver to get the child to school," she said.

So, if you are one of the lucky ones to have had (or will have) a holiday during school time, it's technically your parents who are breaking the law, not you.

According to the law in Western Australia, your parents could even face prosecution for taking you out of school with no valid reason.

WA's Education Department states "[Prosecution is a] last resort where all other efforts to engage a parent voluntarily have been unsuccessful."

If you want to make sure your parents don't get punished, you'll need to rock up to school at least 90 per cent of the time. (That means no more than one sick day a fortnight.) If your attendence falls below that mark, "the school principal is required to investigate the matter".

But Western Australia isn't the only state to have a tough stance on unexplained absences.

In NSW and Queensland, parents are strongly encouraged to not withdraw their children from class except in extenuating circumstances. Victoria requires that schools be notified in advance and that students agree to a learning plan.

And in Tasmania, things have gotten pretty strict too, with the only acceptable reasons for not attending school being sickness or incapacity.

The lesson to take away from all this? Maybe next time mum floats the idea of a surprise trip to somewhere warmer, do the noble thing and see if it's possible to do it in the break. 

Who's a good noodle?

Header Image: 20th Century Fox