Abta has called on local authorities to consider staggered term dates after a couple were fined £1,000 for taking their children out of school to go on holiday.
Stewart and Natasha Sutherland, from Shropshire, were ordered by magistrates to pay £1,000 in costs and fines after taking their three children to Rhodes for a week during term last September.
The fine followed a change in the law in September, removing the right of head teachers to grant up to 10 days’ absence for term-time holidays. Absence can now be granted only in exceptional circumstances.
Abta argued it was fruitless to try to reverse legislation. Head of communications Victoria Bacon said: “We should be careful about encouraging parents to take children out of school. The government has made it easier for local authorities to be more flexible with term dates and as an industry we need to welcome those looking at staggering term times.
“We have successfully lobbied on this and the reality is local authorities now have more freedom [to introduce flexible term dates] and we would like to see them do that.”
Bacon also said it was important to encourage parents to plan in advance by booking during the peak January to March period when free child places are more readily available.
Advantage sales and marketing director Colin O’Neill said: “It’s about educating customers that this is not the industry profiteering.
“Then we can work with local authorities to influence where you can have different holiday periods.”Brighter Group chairman Steve Dunne warned politicians might soon cast the travel industry in the same light as the banking sector.