Holidays and School Trips Outside the UK

Arrangements for notifying and consulting the Social Worker about holiday plans should be agreed in the Placement Plan/Placement Information Record and Delegated Authority Form.

The consent of the parent(s) or person with Parental Responsibility (Section 20) must be obtained and consent form signed. Whilst this is essential if the child is voluntarily cared for (s20) it is also important if we share parental responsibility via interim or full care orders.

The following information should be made available to the social worker:

• Proposed dates and duration of the holiday;
• The wishes and feelings of the child;
• Address(es)/contact details of the holiday location/what type of holiday;
• Insurance details;
• Who will be present on the holiday e.g. names of other children and other adults;
• If the holiday involves staying with friends or relatives, their names and addresses;
• Emergency contacts;
• Any risk assessments that may be required, which should include any health or behaviour issues of the child as well as the holiday environment itself.

If it is a group holiday, the Social Worker must be satisfied that adequate health and safety precautions are taken.

Children must not be taken on holiday during term time unless there are exceptional circumstances; such requests need to be approved by the child and the Head Teacher of the child's school and the Social Work Manager in conjunction with the virtual school. Parental views should be obtained. The sign off for holidays in term time is the exception and comes from the Assistant Director. Holidays must not be booked without this agreement.

The procedure is the same as for those for Accommodated Children (see Section 1, Holidays for children who are cared for) except that the consent of the parents or person having Parental Responsibility (Section 20) is not required but should be obtained wherever practicable or possible. Any objections by the parent(s) should be recorded on the child's electronic records.

The Social Worker should ensure that arrangements are in place through the Placement Plan/Placement Information Record and Delegated Authority Form to be notified well in advance of any plans for holidays abroad in order to obtain required consent.

If the child is the subject of a Care Order and the holiday abroad is for more than one month, an application must also be made to the appropriate Court for the Court's permission to allow the child to go abroad if the parent's written agreement is not obtained.

Where a Court Order is required, the Social Worker should contact Legal Services as soon as possible for the necessary application to be made and advise the parents of the intended application.

If the holiday is authorised by the Court, the holiday should be included in the Placement Plan/Placement Information Record. Carers will also need a letter from the local authority giving permission to take the child out of the country. This will be provided by the Team Manager.

• The Home Office has issued Guidance for Local Authorities Children's Services Departments when Applying for Passports on Behalf of Children;
• Children's Services Departments are normally only entitled to apply for passports for a cared for child when they have parental responsibility;
• Where Children's Services do not hold parental responsibility, the application cannot be processed without the consent of at least one person who has parental responsibility for the child.