As of September 2013 and due to the changes in the law, The Governing body of St.Matthew's has agreed that requests for holidays in term time will no longer be authorised, and therefore the completing of a 'holiday request' is now obsolete.

The Education (Pupil Registration) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2013 amends the earlier 2006 regulations to clarify that leave of absence during term time shall not be granted unless there are "exceptional circumstances".

The 2006 Regulations referred to parents applying for a family holiday in "special circumstances" and to schools having discretion to grant upto ten school days of holiday per year. Many parents interpreted this law as an automatic entitlement to an annual two week term time holiday forcing a review of the Regulation.

For any request for absence during the school year to be considered as "exceptional circumstance" this must be put in writing, well in advance of the proposed time off and marked for the attention of The Governing Body.

Please note any unauthorised absences taken can result with the issue of a Penalty Notice by the Authority's School Attendance Service.

EVERY EFFORT SHOULD BE MADE TO TAKE FAMILY HOLIDAYS DURING THE SCHOOL HOLIDAY PERIODS.