Timeshare offers term time study

The holiday club said it was offering a practical solution

A holiday timeshare club which offers children supervised study during term time vacations has been dubbed irresponsible by a teaching union.

Club Las Calas in Lanzarote says families wanting to make use of lower term-time prices could ask teachers to set their children holiday assignments.

The not-for-profit club's staff would give pupils materials and assist them as they work in a safe environment.

The National Union of Teachers said the scheme was "abusive of education".

Surrogate school?

But the chairman of Club Las Calas owners committee, Adam Johnson, said the private members' holiday club was simply offering a practical solution to an ever-present problem.

It recognised the fact that many parents took holidays in term time because of the high prices charged by travel firms and airlines during school holidays.

He added that the prices could be as much as 100% higher.

Mr Johnson said: "What we feel is that since the government says children can have up to 10 days authorised absence - parents who wish to could offset that loss of term time by helping them undertake learning activities.

"We are not seeking to provide a surrogate school in Lanzarote, what we are saying is our parents need to go to the school and agree something that your children can usefully do whilst you are on holiday.

The Lanzarote timeshare also has a children's activity room

"It's about giving the schools the opportunity to set the assignments."

He suggested children studying Spanish could practise their language skills with the club's Spanish-speaking staff.

Those studying geography could see what volcanic landscape was like by visiting the island's dormant volcano, he said.

However, he admitted that the scheme was not "entirely altruistic" as the timeshare, which is owned entirely by its members, was booked out during school holidays and not so busy during term time.

A spokeswoman for the National Union of Teachers said the idea was very irresponsibled.

Cheap breaks

"Exceptional circumstances allow schools to give authority for children to be taken out of school in term time - but it's exceptional circumstances not so that their parents can go and lounge on the beach.

"This club would have no knowledge of the child, would not know where the child's development was.

"It's abusive of education and there's no help to the child."

A spokesman for the Department for Education and Skills confirmed children could take a maximum of 10 school days authorised absence in any school year but only in exceptional circumstances.

He stressed it was not an automatic right that parents should expect and it is up to each head teacher to decide on a family's circumstances.

He also pointed to its Every Lesson Counts campaign which highlights incentives available to families who book their breaks early for the school holiday periods.

A dedicated website provides links to key early booking deals on domestic and overseas holidays by major companies such as Thomas Cook, Airtours, BA Holidays, Virgin Holidays, and the Co-operative Group.