We’re fined £5 by school for every half-an-hour we’re late to pick up our kids – but teachers STILL plan to strike
A SCHOOL has been slammed for telling parents they will be fined £5 for every half-an-hour they are late to pick their kids up.
Mums and dads whose children go to Woodbank Primary School in Bury, Greater Manchester, have been left outraged by the letter just days before teachers are set to strike.
The letter reads: “Please pick up your child promptly at the end of the day.
“If you do not you could incur a charge of £5 per half an hour.
“Children being picked up late impacts on staff being late to meetings, the running of clubs and it also causes distress to the child.”
But parents have hit back at the school as looks set to be shut for all but two classes on February 1 and 28 and March 15 and 16 amid strikes arranged by the teaching union NEU.
One fuming dad told Manchester Evening News: “We get fined for being late or going on holiday because it disrupts education, but it’s OK for them to go on strike when it suits.
“I’ll be sending a fine to the school for disrupting my child’s education during the strike days.”
Headteacher Kelly Macadam said kids who not picked up on time often become “upset and distressed”
She added: “It is very important that parents and carers pick up their children on time at the end of the school day.
“We always make allowances for exceptional circumstances such as an emergency or being stuck in traffic, and we provide a ‘before and after school’ club which parents can use if they are going to be late.
“We would only consider charging parents who are persistently and repeatedly late. To date, no parent has been charged.”
“If any parent has any concerns about school policy, I would urge them to contact me directly.”
She also insisted the potential closure over strike action is “out of the school’s control”.
The school also warned families they could be fined if they take their kids out of school for holidays.
Parents can face charges of up to £60 per child if they take their kids out of school without permission.
It comes after a Kent school came under fire for saying they would fine parents £1 for every five minutes they were late for pick up.
Teachers at Holy Trinity CofE Primary, in Gravesend, even threatened to ring social services if children were still waiting to be collected at 4pm.