A single mom from England has saved a fortune by taking her kids out of school during term time to go for vacations abroad and said she stands by her decision and will do it again.
Rachel Smith, 33, has been on four holidays so far with her children, Brayden, 11, and Elianna, 9, and has saved an estimated £10,000 (approx. US$12,750) in the process. In her experience, missing school to make the most of cheaper off-peak flight and hotel deals has been worth it even though she has had to face disapproval and a £60 (approx. US$70) fine per child each time.
The mom from Clacton-on-Sea, Essex, said she finds the cost outrageous and doesn’t believe that kids should be penalized just because their families can’t afford £5,000 (US$6,375) for a holiday in August.
The family of three first went away for a holiday to Ibiza, Spain, during term time back in May 2018, when Brayden was 5 and Eliana was 4. That trip was followed by another trip to Majorca during term time the year after.
However, the vacations were stopped for a period due to the pandemic. But in 2022, they picked up where they left off, enjoying a trip to Magaluf, followed by a trip to Can Picafort in June, both in Majorca, Spain.
The school fined the family £120 (US$153) for both children’s absences caused by last year’s second trip to Spain. However, Rachel said she still managed to save £3,000 (approx. US$3,825) on that holiday by doing what she did—with the added bonus of giving her son and daughter memorable experiences they otherwise wouldn’t have had.
“They learn a lot from going on holiday too,” she said. “They’ve been able to experience another culture, they have a massive social awareness and they’re learning another language.”
Additionally, through these incredible travel experiences, they have also learned the basics such as learning how to pack their own hand luggage.
“These are all things they wouldn’t be able to experience if we didn’t miss a few days of school,” Rachel said. “It would be out of the question.”
When asked if she worries about her children missing out at school, Rachel said she looks carefully at their academic calendar before booking a trip to make sure the holiday won’t impact their learning.
“At the end of term, they’re not doing much, and after SATs Brayden won’t be doing anything at school anyway,” Rachel said.
Both of the children also seem to be doing well at school with Brayden scoring a 40 out of 40 on his last SAT math mock test.
“If it was impacting their education I obviously wouldn’t do it,” Rachel said.
According to Rachel, the best way to navigate the situation is to start a system whereby parents are allocated a number of days to take their kids out of school for holidays.
“Just a few days a year, and there should be red zones at important times of the year like leading up to exams,” Rachel said.
In a video, the young mom explained what happened when she let the school know her children would be missing some days recently. She was asked to write a letter to the school stating why she found it necessary to take her children out of school during term time.
The letter stated that the family was going on a holiday abroad during term time since it was cheaper.
After dropping it off at school, Rachel received a call to discuss the letter.
“I could tell by the tone of her voice she wasn’t best impressed,” Rachel said. “But in all honesty, what else was I supposed to say – let’s face it, school holidays cost a fortune to go abroad; it’s double the price.”
Rachel didn’t lie about the reason since she knew her daughter would spill the beans. She continues to stand by her decision, saying: “I never had that growing up, so if I can give my kids that, then I’m going to.
“I’ve worked really hard and so do my children, why shouldn’t we get to go on a family holiday? Why should some children miss out on those experiences and only the kids with parents that afford it get to go?”
She doesn’t think missing school to go on holiday once a year has been “detrimental to their education at all.”
The day after her son completes his end-of-year exams, the jet-setting family plans to take off for another trip to Spain.
