- Nearly two thirds of parents are considering taking child(ren) out of school to bag a cheaper holiday
- Parents happy to wrap government fines into total off-peak holiday cost
- Money, visiting family & friends and strict annual leave dates are biggest reasons for children missing school
Family finances are set to be stretched thin this winter, and a new study out today by one of the UK’s top travel agents, Flight Centre UK, reveals the cost-of-living crisis has prompted a whopping 62% of parents to consider taking their child(ren) out of school for a cheaper holiday. A move that could see nearly 6.5 million children* out of the classroom over the next academic year.
The government website states that children can only be taken out of school for exceptional circumstances, however, results from the Flight Centre UK study show nearly half of all parents surveyed (46%) believe that a holiday can count as exceptional circumstances. With many parents arguing that holidays can be educational and can offer horizon broadening experiences for young, developing brains.
In order to get the best deal, 36% of parents asked by Flight Centre UK said they have even considered adding the daily government fine for taking children out of school into the cost of the holiday if it still works out cheaper than going away in peak holiday periods.
However, taking children out of school is not a new concept, as a third of parents said they already risk it, with 33% reporting they have taken their children out of school three or more times!
Aside from money, the other reasons for taking children out of school during term time according to the report include:
- To visit friends and family (52%)
- Due to parent’s assigned annual leave dates (38%)
- For an educational trip (36%)
- If the trip was cancelled and need to take the trip at another time (29%)
- If it’s the only financially viable option (27%)
- For a special event, such as the Olympics (25%)
- If the preferred holiday destination is quieter (19%)
- If the weather in the destination is better (17%)
- For religious holidays (17%)
Yvonne Hobden, from Flight Centre UK says “Holidays are key moments in any family life, making memories and spending quality time together is priceless. However, with the lack of support from the government to ease the cost-of-living crisis, our report has revealed how many parents are considering taking term time getaways over the next year.”
Flight Centre’s internal data shows the most popular long haul destinations customers are booking between now and Christmas:
- Singapore
- New York
- Sydney
- Las Vegas
- Brisbane
- Dubai
- Bangkok
- San Franscisco
- Victoria,
- Los Angeles
- Miami
- Perth
Flight Centre also celebrates its 40th anniversary in 2022 and has launched its biggest competition to date to mark the occasion: a global giveaway of holidays in excess of £200k.
Flight Centre will be giving customers the chance to win one of 40 holidays, designed specially by Flight Centre experts, simply by entering into a prize pool by 31 August 2022 either in-store, online, or by pre-registering for the Travel Runway 2.0 virtual experience.
-Ends-
Notes to Editors:
- *There are currently 10,320,811 full and part time pupils at school in the UK. 62% of that is 6,398,902.82.
- Data: Flight Centre surveyed 430 parents in August 2022.
For further press information, please contact:
Anna Nyman | Chloe Hernandez | Hannah Carlisle | Emma Arthurs
Rooster PR
T: +44 (0)203 440 8924
E: [email protected]
About Flight Centre:
Flight Centre UK is part of one of the largest independent travel companies in the world, which means thousands of people on the ground, in destination, sourcing the best product, service and deals exclusively for customers.
With more five-star Trustpilot reviews than any other travel agency, Flight Centre has an overall ‘Excellent’ rating based on an average score of 4.9/5 rating them #1 Travel Agent based on 20,000 reviews and above.
Friendly Flight Centre Travel Consultants are knowledgeable and experienced – real-life humans (not chat-bots!) who not only love to travel but also love getting to know their customers and relish the planning that goes into the perfect trip. Flight Centre consultants listen to your unique travel needs, no matter how complex, and use ‘holiday know-how’ to create itineraries designed based on each customer’s travel style, needs and budget.
Quite simply, Flight Centre tailor-makes it easy. For more information go to www.flightcentre.co.uk, www.facebook.com/FlightCentreUK, www.twitter.com/flightcentre_UK or www.instagram.com/flightcentreuk.
