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Mother mortified after son tells teachers he wasn’t ‘sick’ but going on a ‘Jet2 plane to Tenerife’ – as people say the school’s response is ’10/10′

British mother Dione Walker took to social media to explain the situation

Read more: Mother blasts ‘disgusting’ fines over taking her children out of school for holidays – and vows term-time trip to Disneyland will be ‘educational’

By ELLEN COUGHLAN, ENTERTAINMENT AND LIFESTYLE JOURNALIST

Published: 14:27 BST, 15 September 2025 | Updated: 14:51 BST, 15 September 2025

A mother was left mortified after her son told his teachers he wasn’t off school because he was ‘sick’ but rather as he was taking a ‘Jet2 plane to Tenerife’.

Dione Walker, who is based in the UK, took to TikTok to explain the awkward situation, saying ‘there is no bigger grass than a toddler.’

In a clip, which racked up over 800,000 views, the mother-of-one shared a snap of the message exchange between her and her son Isaac’s primary school.

In the messages, school staff stated: ‘Please can you contact the Academy to advise why Isaac is absent today. Attendance is more important than ever, everyday [sic] matters. Thanks.’

Dione, who posts under @dionewalker3, replied to say her child was not feeling well and he had ‘a rash’.

She wrote: ‘Hello, Isaac has got spots and a rash on him, we think it’s chicken pox, he’s going to the chemist for them to have a look at it. Thank you.’

However, in an embarrassing turn of events the school shared what the young boy had told his teachers a few days previous.

The school replied: ‘Isaac told staff that he was going to Tenerife on a Jet2 aeroplane.’

Dione Walker, who is based in the UK, was left mortified after her son told his teachers he wasn’t ‘sick’ but going on a ‘Jet2 plane to Tenerife’

The mortified mother captioned the exchange: ‘My five year old giving me karma for lying.’

In the next picture slide, the mother shared a snap of Isaac having the time of his life on holiday.

Dione’s viral clip gained over 53,000 likes, with many on the mother’s side, and advising her in future not to tell her son the plan until the morning of the holiday.

In another video, Dione shared a clip of her adorable toddler singing karaoke in Tenerife and wrote: ‘Your child has been marked absent.’

In England, parents must get permission from the headteacher to take a child out of school during term time, and this is only granted in ‘exceptional circumstances,’ with a standard holiday generally not considered a valid reason.

Children must get an education between the school term after their fifth birthday and the last Friday in June in the school year they turn 16, according to Gov.UK.

Parents are legally required to send their children to school every day, and taking them out without permission can lead to a fine or legal action.

A fine of £80 will be given to the parent, rising to £160 if they do not pay within 21 days.

In a clip, which racked up over 800,000 views, the mother-of-one shared a snap of the message exchange from her son, Isaac’s primary school

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From the 2024–25 school year, parents can receive up to two fines per child within three years, £160 for the second offence, after which further absences may lead directly to court action without additional fines.

Almost half-a-million fines were issued to parents in England during the last academic year for taking their children out of school without permission, figures show.

The number of families being fined for taking holidays in term time has risen as parents increasingly turn their backs on a week’s education for their young ones in favour of avoiding exorbitant holiday prices during official school breaks.

Department for Education (DfE) data revealed 487,344 fines were issued in 2023-24 – up 22 per cent on 398,796 penalty notices in the year before.

And numbers are noticeably up since the pre-Covid era – in 2018-19 just 333,388 penalty notices were issued to parents.

The vast majority (91 per cent) of fines issued in 2023-24 were for unauthorised holidays.

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Mother mortified after son tells teachers he wasn’t ‘sick’ but going on a ‘Jet2 plane to Tenerife’ – as people say the school’s response is ’10/10′

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