A mother-of-three has resorted to homeschooling her children for three months to avoid the threat of court action for taking them on holiday during term time. Rachel Smith, 43, a jewellery designer, and her husband Stuart, 41, who manages Airbnb properties, had already been fined £480 in January for taking their children - Owen, nine, Ruby, seven, and Zac, five - to Portugal during the school term.

The couple, from Bridgewater, Somerset, had booked two more family breaks, including a trip to Legoland and an  Easter holiday to Lanzarote, which would require their children to miss four days of school. To avoid further fines or a potential criminal record, they deregistered their children from school and are teaching them at home until May, when they plan to re-enroll them.

Rachel explained: "We're homeschooling our three children for a few months just so that we can go on a couple of affordable holidays. We'd be missing a total of four days off school this term. We had no choice but to take them out and homeschool them.

"We'd already been fined £480 and we were worried about getting a large fine and possible criminal record if we didn't."

Rachel criticises the government, calling it "a dictatorship" for imposing such strict rules on families. Rachel Smith expressed her deep-seated concerns about facing court action due to her decision to take her children on a family holiday during term time: "I was really worried about court action, because I know of lots of people this has happened to. My anxiety was so high I couldn't sleep. I never intended to homeschool my children, but it's the only choice we have."

Rachel and her family had previously faced fines after a trip to Portugal earlier in the year: "We went on holiday to Portugal earlier this year – we'd planned to come back the day after they were due at school but we ended up extending it by a week - and got fined hundreds of pounds," reports the Mirror.

She highlighted the vast difference in costs when planning a trip during term time versus school holidays, comparing the prices of a visit to Legoland and their affordable flights to Portugal in January: "Going to Legoland for one night during term time will cost £400, but going in the Easter holidays is £700. By going to Portugal in January we managed to get flights for just £20 per person. You can never get flights for anything like that in the school holidays."

Recent government statistics (2023-24) reveal a record number of fines issued to parents in England for their children's unauthorised absences from school, with a staggering 91 per cent attributed to family holidays. Failure to pay or repeat offenses can lead to prosecution, with 28,296 parents taken to court over their children's school attendance during the same period.

Rachel firmly believes that the government has overstepped its authority, stating: "I think the government has been very heavy-handed – it feels like a dictatorship. How should the government be allowed to be in control of your children? The government is choosing to make it so that people can't have a holiday."

In her opinion, family holidays are not luxuries but rather essential for the wellbeing of families: "I don't think holidays are a luxury – they are so important for the wellbeing of the family."

Rachel shared her perspective on the educational value of experiences gained outside the classroom, noting: "And the kids learn so much from having these experiences that we couldn't afford to do at other times."

Rachel added: "I understand that the government needs to crack down on truancy, but we are just wanting to give our kids educational experiences. There shouldn't be a one-size fits all approach."

The process for Rachel to formalise her children's school re-entry in May is not without its hurdles; she must reapply and then abide by a decision period that may stretch up to three weeks. She explained the steps taken to enable home education: "In order to homeschool, I had to write a letter saying I was deregistering them," and added, "I was told that the school couldn't guarantee that there would be places available when they tried to come back. But it's a small school and not oversubscribed, so we should be ok."

The flexibility homeschooling offers has markedly changed their routine.

Assisting her partner Stuart with homeschooling, Rachel starts the day guiding their children through times tables and spellings at 8.15am. This is followed by a morning walk, spanning from 9am to 11am, then after a lunch break, the children enjoy a mix of play and television between 12.30 and 2pm.

Their afternoon at 2pm comprises an art session, leading up to social visits to family or friends, attendance at a kids' club at 3.30pm, dinner service at 5pm, a singular TV show at 6pm, an hour of reading beginning at 6.30pm, and concludes with bedtime set for 8pm.

Rachel, a parent who has embraced the flexibility of homeschooling, shared her family's approach to education: "We might do half an hour of maths in the morning and then go for a walk or we might do it at 6pm," she says. "We fit the learning in when it is right time for them. If they are not in the mood to do maths one day then we won't do any that day."

She also spoke about the benefits this flexibility brings to their family life: "We used to go to an Airbnb for the weekend and have to rush back on Sunday night for school, but now we can do things on the beach the next day and create family memories. There is so much more flexibility."

Rachel, who estimates a yearly saving of £3,000 to £5,000 by holidaying during term time, confidently states: "We will have no hesitation in doing it again – either later this year or next year - if I feel the kids would benefit from a holiday. Children are only little once."

The Mirror has sought a response from the Department for Education.

There is a petition to allow parents to take their children out of school for up to 10 days fine free. Find the petition here.

What's your take on Rachel and Stuart's situation? Share your thoughts with us in the comments section.