Why do school s insist on having the 6 week break in August...

[EezerGoode]

Why not have a week of every month? Or just allow each area to set its own holidays..we could all then go on holiday in June or may ,when there actually was nice weather..and it would be cheaper..we all seem to accept it often rains in August..meaning we pay top whack for holidays when it pisses down....so what is stopping headteachers spreading the holidays throughout the year so we can take advantage of decent weather and cheaper prices??!!

We have academies and county primaries in our area - plus my DC's nursery takes an Easter break. One year the nursery had a break first, then the academies had their break, then a week back for everyone, then the primaries. I run Guides and we had to have five weeks off due to unavailability of leaders. Same for a lot of clubs etc. And though the parents of secondary school children can leave them/arrange with friends, if you had a nursery plus a primary child you were stuffed.

The OP also seems to think all parents can take all holidays as annual (snigger) leave. I can't take that much annual leave, not in total, and practically speaking, not together or that often, as I have, you know, work stuff that needs doing.

look at the private school schedule, there must be a very good reasons why their holidays are planned as they are.

Teachers do themselves no favours with stupid comments like that, do you have no concept of what it's like for all of the rest of us non teachers to manage school holidays

I would imagine the 'rest of us non teachers' take annual leave?

Now my children are grown up and gone I like to be able to have holidays when I can be fairly sure there won't be children around, so I am glad they are all off together. You'll get there yourself one day!

Surely anal leave is a holiday at Center Parcs

coddiwomple

The private schools around here have longer summer breaks.

It does make me laugh when talking about changing holidays people always use ' so everybody could have a cheaper holiday'
Of less people go on holiday in August the travel companies need to make that money somewhere so instead of discounting the holiday off season (which is what happens they don't put the price up in the summer, that is the price) they will just put the prices up all year round!

There were strikes in Nottingham when the city tried to move to a 5 term system

Private School hols are often a hangover from days when children would need to travel back to see parents in the colonies though, so a 2 month summer break to allow for a boat journey.

Our village school puts all insets together and has last week of June off. Good if only got primary but the high schools don't and no childcare running.

We had Easter last year where 50% of schools locally had 1st 2 weeks and rest following Lea hols had a random 2 weeks at end of April. Caused hassle as some parents had 4 weeks to cover and no chance of a family holiday. Teens who usually minded younger siblings were unavailable. Plus timing wise some schools only had 3 days back then Sats (was a bank Hol and polling day first week back) was great for cheap deals for the lucky ones ( sadly Dd was first 2 weeks) £200 late deal flight to Florida and I know several who went to centre parcs for a reasonable price. Childcare was scarcer as some did 2 weeks some did other 2 weeks dd couldn't go to her usual one.

The private schools around here have longer summer breaks.

Around here too, and it is such a better system for everybody. I am very jealous (and no, I can't really afford to put 4 kids in private school unfortunately)

This year 2 schools in my local area are having a shorter summer break & 2 weeks for October half term - not sure how that's going to work for parents with kids at 2 different schools. I work for a company that runs kids holiday clubs & activities during term time. At the moment we won't be doing holiday clubs for the extra week in October as there won't be enough kids to make it worth while, so parents of those children will have very few childcare options

Most jobs have 4/5 not 13 weeks annual leave though. The Easter hols shambles I mentioned above I had several mums ask me about childcare as never used before as they are usually off as work in schools.

look at the private school schedule, there must be a very good reasons why their holidays are planned as they are.

Ours have a longer school day.

The private schools around here have longer summer breaks.

Due to longer school days.

I don't think it would be any more of a nightmare for teaching parents than anyone else.
Some of the hols are bound to overlap, and the rest of the time they'd have to pay for people to look after their kids or call in favours, just like everyone else does.

Tradition. I think that if there was some variation then the issue of higher holiday prices could be addressed to an extent.

I work in a school, DD is at private and DS in a different LA, so our holidays don't match up very often. It's ok summer holidays because although we all broke up and go back on different days there are 4 weeks we are all off together but other than Christmas week and Easter bank holiday the rest of our holidays don't line up at all. It's not the paying for childcare I mind, I know most people don't get as much time off as i do, but I can't chose my days off so if it all went to short holidays there may actually never be 2 weeks where all of us are off at the same time and can go on holiday together!

I think that if there was some variation then the issue of higher holiday prices could be addressed to an extent.

More expensive all year round.

Teachers need a block of time off from the kids.
Imagine having your kids all day every day for 10 weeks and multiplying that by 2 or 3.

We've all seen the nightmare of "18 kids and counting". Try 30 kids and counting.

And our holidays are unpaid.

I don't think it would be any more of a nightmare for teaching parents than anyone else.
Some of the hols are bound to overlap, and the rest of the time they'd have to pay for people to look after their kids or call in favours, just like everyone else does.

This has been explained. Some might overlap" if your lucky but teachers can not take annual leave, "just like everybody else does".

have we got to the bottom of this anal leave thing yet. Some sort of link with colonic irrigation or am I getting confused with the latest geography syllabus?

Have you cancelled the cheque?

TEACHERS CANNOT TAKE ANNUAL LEAVE. TEACHERS CANNOT TAKE ANNUAL LEAVE. TEACHERS CANNOT TAKE ANNUAL LEAVE. ANNUAL LEAVE TEACHERS CANNOT TAKE.

I'll be the lone voice wanting a week or two off summer and a few days added to the autumn and winter half terms. I don't do winter and would rather take annual leave with the kids then and have a few days to hibernate when the weather is crap. avoids the fact the weather is currently crap and it's august .

We live on the border. It's quite common for children to go to primary in one LA, & secondary in another. Ds goes to school in one area & has different Easter holidays to dd & dh who go to school/teach over the border. Sometimes different half terms.

It's a nightmare.