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Is the UK government’s crackdown on term-time holidays damaging tourism?


Reporting by Jak Phillips and Magali Robathan


I


n September 2013, leg- islation came into force meaning that headteach- ers are no longer able to authorise requests for parents to take their chil- dren out of school during term time. Previously, heads were able to use their discretion to authorise absences in ‘special cir- cumstances’, which allowed some parents to take their children out of school for short breaks or holidays when prices were lower, however, under the new rules, parents can now be fi ned £60 per child per week for unauthorised absence. Some parents are furious about this change, saying that it hits fam- ilies who can’t afford to go away during the school holidays, when prices can be as much as dou- ble those during term time. In turn operators say the rules are affect-


A fi ning system favours families who can aff ord to pay the fi nes


Kurt Janson, policy director, Tourism Alliance


ing their businesses, and that they’re seeing a drop in the num- bers of families taking shorter breaks out of season. So are the new rules fair? What impact are they having on the tour- ism industry? And are tourism companies exploiting families by hiking up their prices during the school holidays, or is it a simple case of supply and demand, with organisations making money dur- ing the peak season to see them through the rest of the year? We speak to some of those affected by the change to fi nd out.


T


here’s a perception that tour-


Our users think holiday companies are exploiting parents Justine Roberts, CEO, Mumsnet


W 66


ith the introduction of fi nes for taking children out of school during term-time


combined with sky-high travel costs it feels like a lose-lose situation for parents. Three quarters of Mumsnet users think holiday companies are exploiting parents who have no choice about when they travel. Obviously it’s hard to refute the laws of supply and demand, but equally, holiday companies seem to be hap- pily making extraordinary profi ts out of families and not surprisingly many feel


that they are being ripped off. Most parents would rather not take their children out of school, but for many families it can be the only way to afford a holiday, as travel compa- nies ratchet up their prices to such an extent during peak times. Many Mumsnet users are frustrated


by a one-size-fi ts-all approach when it comes to fi ning for term-time absences and would rather heads use their discretion more, especially when the absence is for occasions like fam- ily weddings or once-in-a-lifetime trips.


Read Leisure Management online leisuremanagement.co.uk/digital


ism businesses increase their prices in order to profi t-gouge from families during the school holidays. However, many tourism businesses are only econom- ically viable for four to six months of the year and price differences that occur are mainly a result of signifi cant discounting by tourism businesses dur- ing off-peak periods. It’s very hard to get people to travel outside peak periods and tourism busi- nesses have to undertake signifi cant price reductions in order to stimulate demand and gain the cashfl ow they need to retain staff and stay open. Travel and holidays can well be


important in a child’s development. The tourism industry would welcome a debate as to how to resolve the prob- lem of enabling families to undertake more affordable holidays while not adversely impacting on their education – it’s a question of getting the right sort of balance. Spreading demand would be of considerable benefi t to the tour- ism industry, as extending the tourism season would help with maintaining the viability of many businesses. The problem with a fi ning system is that it favours those families that can pay the fi nes rather than those that are the poorest. In effect, it becomes a fee to take children out of school that only affl uent families are able to pay.


ISSUE 3 2014 © cybertrek 2014


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