School’s £480 fine threat forced me to cancel vital op
A SINGLE mother claims she was forced to cancel an operation after her children’s school threatened her with a £480 fine if they missed classes.
Aleah Leigh, 30, of West Drayton, West London, requested permission to take her son and daughter out of school for four days.
They were to stay with their grandmother in Kineton, Warwickshire, while Ms Leigh had a hysterectomy at the end of term in July last year.
But she claimed she was turned down by the head of Laurel Lane primary, who allegedly told her to send the children to stay with someone locally. But Ms Leigh said she did not know anyone she could trust.
Ms Leigh, who suffers from polycystic ovary syndrome, then suffered internal bleeding from a burst cyst and had an emergency operation around the time of the scheduled op.
She says she still needs a hysterectomy and that her worry over her health and the possibility of fines is affecting her children, Dominic, 10, and Olivia, five, to the extent that they are afraid to take time off when they are sick.
Ms Leigh said: “I need to have the hysterectomy done otherwise I’ll need repeated keyhole surgery, which isn’t solving the long-term issue.
“The system is punishing single mums. I don’t want to be passing out again when I’m alone with the children. It’s dangerous and constantly in the back of my mind.
“As I’m a single mum, it’s really difficult to find someone to watch the kids. I used to rely on a neighbour but now she’s working.”
A spokeswoman for Frays Academy Trust, which runs Laurel Lane school, said: “There is absolutely no truth in what’s being said. We have endeavoured to support the family. We always support our pupils and their wellbeing is our number one priority.” Single mother Aleah Leigh with daughter Olivia, five, and son Dominic, 10