A record number of parents were hit with fines last year after their children skipped lessons, official figures show.
New statistics also show a steep rise in the number of parents prosecuted for failing to pay their penalties, with almost 8,000 cases taken to court.More please, faster.
I am no Francophile as having lived there for eight years I found not much that I liked except there were two notable exceptions three if you count their food but knower days as most of the best French chefs have left for London or other foreign parts it can be obtained in the UK. One their healthcare system is excellent and shows up the NHS to be what it is dysfunctional and not fit for purpose. The other is their education system which beats the British one into a cocked hat. Their school year is far better organised and one part of it is to stagger the school holidays so that all the pupils are not off at the same time so that holiday times do not suffer the same peaks as they do in the UK so the necessity of taking time out is considerably lessened.
ReplyDeleteI live in France and believe me there are plenty of good chefs about who have not gone to the U.K. looking for work, but then I live in the South West where the old social values of France are still strong. Agree with you about the Medical and Education systems though.
ReplyDeleteWhen court cases for failing to keep children in school and failure to pay subsequent fines take up 10% of magistrate's time then that's the time when the system is definitely broken. Just like the TV licence system.
ReplyDeleteThere are several local schools who 'decline' to fine parents of a particular religion who take their children away to their homeland 'for cultural purposes' and who often come back with a husband or without a clitoris. Anyone querying this is deemed to be a racist (it's a religion, teachers, not a race!).
ReplyDeleteLocal education authorities seem to do nothing about this while handing out penalty notices to everyone else.
Penseivat
Turn this on its head. Make all those that have kids pay for their education. If your little darlings are not turning up, it is they that are robbing you, not the taxpayer.
ReplyDelete"Their school year is far better organised and one part of it is to stagger the school holidays..."
ReplyDeleteI really don't know why we haven't done that. Perhaps the teaching unions object?
"...then that's the time when the system is definitely broken."
Agreed.
"Make all those that have kids pay for their education. If your little darlings are not turning up, it is they that are robbing you, not the taxpayer."
A good idea!