To think the Scottish school holidays for the summer work much better than the English

[Urbanbeetler]

Surely finishing at the end of June instead of July and going back early/mid August works much better with the UK weather. I feel so sorry for anyone who has worked through the sunshine to grab a UK break during the last 2 weeks of the English holiday. It always seems to rain at this point of the year!

Weren't lots of Scottish mums bemoaning the terrible summer holiday weather they'd had in 2017?

Ha- maybe! Perhaps it’s swings and roundabouts. June always seems lovelier though.

Not necessarily, we've had snow up here in June before and rarely get hay made before the mid/end of August. Also, our local council has now decreed that the primary school day finishes at 12.30 on a Friday, which has caused havoc for working parents.

The schools in my part of the UK have had half days on a Friday for years.
The weather does seem to more unpredictable in August though.
But knowing our luck if the school holidays change so will the weather.

Or be like secondary schools in Ireland and get June, July AND August off, haha!

I’m Scottish and we didn’t finish until the first week of July. We had a glorious summer though and it has very quickly turned to Autumn weather now that the schools are back. I even bought skirts for my dd, who refuses to wear anything other than trousers when it’s cold, as she was delighted at the thought of the weather being lovely for her first term back. She has been in trousers since starting back last Tuesday!

I know an English school who have funny term times & go back mid-August. The trouble is that legally kids have to stay in their old year group until 1st September so the first 2 weeks of term are basically a waste of time!

Although legally that’s true, plenty of schools move them up to the next curriculum year in June to avoid the end of year relax. They follow the new curriculum. I don’t like it but it is possible.

Another issue about starting English schools in August is that the teachers’ pay and conditions means that contracts start on September 1st, so academies wishing to start in August have to opt out of that document.

The weather is generally better in July than August.

But I'd not want to lose May half term.

We get both July and August as school holidays. And the weather is almost inevitably at it's best in May, June and September