A mom criticizes fines for taking her children out of school for a holiday, insisting the Disneyland trip will be educational.
A mother from Rotherham, South Yorkshire, is facing backlash for taking her children out of school during term time for a holiday.
Whitney Ainscough, 31, believes her trip to Disneyland in Paris will be educational.
This comes despite receiving fines and threats of a criminal record.
The mom took the children on holiday during school.
Whitney has three children: Cora, 12; Addison, 7; and Adley, 3.
She recently took them on vacations that caused them to miss school.
Last year, she spent $6,500 on a trip to Cyprus and another $10,400 on a holiday to Zante. Each trip made her children miss five days of school.
Mom criticizes unfair fines for taking children out of school for family trip
After the Cyprus trip, Whitney received a $78 fine from Cora’s school.
She paid it but was shocked to get another letter stating that she could face a criminal charge for taking her children out of school.
This letter cited Section 444 (1) of the Education Act 1996, which states that parents can be charged if their child does not attend school regularly.
Whitney was upset when she found out about the potential criminal record.
‘Obviously, I couldn’t read it properly because I had to take the kids to school so I put it down a minute, I only scanned through it and I was like what the f***.
‘I took my kids to school, came back, and read the letter. The first thing I did straight away was make a video. I was like, I’m fuming, what on earth?
‘I was expecting that I may get another fine but I’d not heard anything and it had been months.
She expressed her feelings on social media, where she has a following of 440,000 on TikTok.
In her posts, she said, “How could you even threaten somebody with jail for taking their kids on holiday?”
She feels that taking her children on trips helps them learn about the world.
Whitney argued that school is important, but so are real-life experiences.
“Whenever we go on holiday, I would say they are all educational,” she mentioned, citing examples like visiting a shipwreck and Turtle Island during previous trips.
Reasons for choosing term-time holidays
Whitney explained that one of her sons has additional needs, making it difficult for him to cope in busy environments like during school holidays.
She believes that traveling during less busy times is better for her family.
“The six-week holidays are way too busy for him,” she said.
Despite facing fines and legal threats, Whitney plans to take her children to Paris for another trip soon.
She insists that these experiences are valuable and that her children will catch up on any missed schoolwork.
‘I take my kids on a nice holiday to see the world and you get penalised for it. It’s absolutely disgusting.
‘I want them to see more of the world and yes school is educational and whatever else and they need education.
But they also need to see more of the world. It f***ing frustrates me.’
Community members are divided over school attendance policies.
Many parents share her frustration over the strict rules regarding taking children out of school for family vacations.
Some argue that experiences outside the classroom can be just as valuable as lessons learned in school.
Parents are often torn between following school rules and providing their children with enriching experiences. Whitney’s story highlights this ongoing debate.
