HOPEFULLY the recent Supreme Court ruling to uphold the fine imposed on a parent for taking his child out of school during term time will now put this issue to bed.

As a retired Assistant Principal of a large Academy I was responsible for 'vetting' the dozens of parental requests which landed on my desk each year. Many parents seemed to consider it was their right to take their child out of school for any reason — which it is not — and confused the inflated prices set by holiday firms during peak times with this right.

As the Supreme Court correctly pointed out a child's absence impacts not just on the child but also the teacher who has to help with the 'catch up' and the other children in the class who have less teacher time as a result.

Schools still have the discretion to grant absence for reasons such as religious observance, family funerals etc. but a child should be in school every day unless prevented by illness and parents have a duty to ensure that this happens. The old chestnut that holidays provide quality family time can be achieved in lots of inexpensive ways which do not always have to start with a plane trip to Florida. Maybe one way would be to start by limiting access to technology at home and banning mobile phones from the dining table, resurrecting the dying art of making conversation.

Bernard Hurst

Hollins