A PARENTS organisation yesterday expressed concern over the number of Leaving Cert students who were leaving the country for celebratory holidays.
Hundreds of students departed for the Balearic, Canary and Greek islands following the results this week, just three days ahead of the first-round CAO offers.
National Parents Council (post-primary) public relations officer Rose Tully said the organisation did not approve of students going on Leaving Cert holidays “as they should be at home to fill out their CAO offers”.
Ms Tully said in the absence of students parents were unsure how to approach the first round of CAO offers. “This is putting parents under a lot of pressure to complete the CAO offers for their children.”
She said the National Parents Council helpline got 2,800 calls last year on CAO offers. Some 64 per cent were from parents unsure how to respond to the offers.
Tony Brazil, managing director of Limerick Travel, said mid-August was the most popular time for post-Leaving Cert holidays, with students planning trips months in advance.
He said several hundred Leaving Cert students had booked holidays with the company, with Gran Canaria, Ibiza, Crete and Majorca the most popular places.
Mr Brazil said while package holidays were very popular among students, some were “opting for three and four-day breaks to be back in time for the CAO offers”.
John Spollen, director of Cassidy Travel in Dublin, said the statistics from the company’s five retail shops “would lead us to believe that between 70 and 80 per cent of a Leaving Cert class in the Dublin area would go on a post-Leaving Cert holiday”.