We'll take the penalty and go on holiday: Two-fifths of parents would risk a fine and take a term-time trip to save money

• New rules make it harder for permission to take kids out of school in term
  
• Hundreds of thousands have signed petitions against inflated prices
• MPs have tabled a debate in the House of Commons
  

By Rachel Rickard Straus

Updated: 06:30 EDT, 17 February 2014

Millions of parents are prepared to risk a fine for taking their children on holiday during term time, a new survey has revealed.

As many as two-fifths of parents would flout the new rules so they can get a cheaper summer holiday, the poll from Halifax found.

New rules were introduced last September making it harder for parents to get permission to take their children out of school in term time.

Worth the gamble: Two-fifths of parents would risk a fine for taking their kids on holiday during term time

A maximum fine of £60 per pupil per parent can now be charged, rising to £120 if not paid within seven days.

Refusal to pay can mean a fine of up to £2,500 and a possible jail sentence of up to three months.

Since then, hundreds of thousands of parents have signed petitions urging Parliament to look at the issue of travel companies raising their prices during school holidays,

And last month a Facebook rant about the cost of breaks at Center Parcs by father Paul Cookson went viral and led to more than 100,000 signing an online petition calling for a cap on price increases in school holidays.

The petitions have prompted MPs to table a debate in the House of Commons about the issue next week.

Studies have shown that travel firms, airlines, hotels and other businesses inflate prices by up to 200 per cent when schools close.

Until September parents were granted authorised absences of up to ten days by sympathetic headteachers but this has now been banned except in ‘exceptional circumstances’.

The Halifax survey found half of parents said the single most important factor affecting their choice of summer holiday destination is the cost, and nearly a quarter don’t think they will be able to go away on holiday this summer.

Of the two-fifths of parents who would consider risking a fine, more than half would consider going away in term time if they could save up to £750 on the cost of the holiday.

Nearly two-fifths would risk a fine if they could save up to £500 and 15 per cent would even consider going away in term time if they could save £100 to £250 – the cost of a fine for two parents with two children.

Meanwhile, almost one third of parents will pay for their summer holiday in one go out of savings, whereas 27 per cent will use their current account, and 23 per cent will pay for it with a credit card.

The number of children parents have appears to have an impact on how they pay for their holiday.

While parents with one child are most likely to pay for their summer holiday using their current account (27 per cent), those with two children are most likely to pay for it out of savings (37 per cent), and those with 3 or more children were most likely to pay for in on credit card (36 per cent).

Parents with three or more children are most likely to pay for the cost of a family holiday by credit card, the survey from Halifax found

Richard Fearon, head of Halifax savings, said: ‘Parents’ finances are being squeezed; with the new rules on fines for taking children out of school during term time on one side and increased prices for holidays during the summer on the other. Some parents are prepared to risk a fine if they can get a cheaper holiday.

‘Many families are working hard to build up their savings balances, and will be able to use this to pay for treats such as holidays. Being realistic about what you’re able to save and identifying what it’s intended for can help to make it easier to maintain a regular savings habit.’

Another recent survey also found that most middle-class parents can no longer afford to take their children abroad because of the soaring cost of going away in the school holidays.

Off peak: Holidays during term time are often considerably cheaper and less crowded than during the school breaks - but it is not permitted to take children out of school during term time

Three-quarters of those paid up to £24,000 – close to the average income – said they had difficulty saving up, and half of families with a combined income of between £44,000 and £54,000 said they had to make sacrifices to spend on a holiday.

Even those earning £74,000 to £84,000 are feeling the pinch, with more than a third complaining about prices.

It is only when household income reaches £84,000 or more that the vast majority - 93 per cent - say they are not concerned about the cost, the survey by holiday firm Hogan's Irish Cottages found.