A primary school student in Helsingborg missed the start of the school year due to a family trip abroad following a death. The parents now face fines for violating school attendance laws. Despite their request to fulfill school obligations differently, the local education board denied it, citing the importance of school attendance. The decision has been appealed.
Parents Face Fines as Child Misses School Start Due to Overseas Trip
Parents Face Fines as Child Misses School Start Due to Overseas Trip
A primary school student missed school because the family traveled abroad after a death. Now, the guardians risk fines. "Lack of empathy," say the student's parents—school attendance, insists the municipality, reports Helsingborgs Dagblad.
In the winter of 2023–2024, a debate raged about parents taking their children out of school to travel abroad during a period—despite mandatory school attendance.
Most often, it was about Thailand.
Did Not Show Up for School Start
Now, a similar case has occurred in Helsingborg. A primary school student missed the first weeks of the autumn term because they are abroad.
Helsingborgs Dagblad writes that the student's parents informed the school at the end of the summer break that the child would not show up for the start of school. The day after, the whole family reportedly traveled to a country in South America due to a death, intending to stay for two months.
HD writes that the parents' application for the student to fulfill school obligations in another way was submitted too late, and the child and education board then said no.
Municipality's Decision
– We follow the legislation and practice that exists. In each case, a comprehensive assessment is made, says Elisabeth Seferidis, administrative lawyer in Helsingborg municipality, to the newspaper.
She continues:
– We have concluded that there is neither a satisfactory alternative to education nor, in a comprehensive assessment, exceptional reasons for the student to be absent for as long as two months. School attendance and the right to education are very important.
Risk of Fines
The municipality has ordered the guardians to ensure that the child is in school by September 15, otherwise, they risk fines of 560 kronor per school day. According to HD's calculations, this means the parents risk around 8,000 kronor in fines if the student is not back before the originally intended date, in early October.
The parents wanted to enroll their child in a private school during the overseas stay and reportedly asked for school assignments and homework. They call the board's decision "lack of empathy," writes HD.
The decision has been appealed to the administrative court in Malmö.