AIBU not to go to work during the holiday (teacher)?

[Namechange7000]

I'm a teacher in a village primary school in England but I'm not originally from the UK. Since arriving in England I've only worked as a teacher and I can't tell if my work's expectations are normal for here or not.

We have today and tomorrow as inset days and the children come back to school on Wednesday. Before the summer break the head teacher told us that we couldn’t afford cleaners over the break and that there wouldn't be much time for classroom setup on the inset days and hinted that we should come to work during the break to do it. But by the time the email was sent (end of June) I had already booked my flights to spend the entire break in Australia. My parents live in Sydney and we haven't seen them since before covid so I really wanted my dc to spend some time with them and obviously I wanted to see them too. We had a lovely break and got back to England on Friday so I'd have time to recover from jetlag and be ready to start work today. We got the inset schedule emailed to us on Sunday and there is literally no time scheduled for classroom set up and no planning time. We have back-to-back meetings from 8.30 - 17.00 with an hour for lunch both days but actually today's lunch break was only 40 minutes because the meeting ran late. I had to leave by 17.30 to collect my dc but even if I didn't, the school building is only open until 18.00.

At 17.00 this evening I was in my classroom frantically trying to sort things out. I've moved year groups so I had to move classrooms and there was a summer camp using my new classroom for a month. The previous teacher had to shove all of the teaching materials, toys etc into the cupboards before the break to prevent the summer camp from using them. My manager came into the room this evening and commented on how messy and not ready it is (the furniture is all over the room wherever the summer camp left it, no displays backing paper up, no interactive learning wall displays, no materials out, no book corner set up, no role play area set up, I haven't put the children's names on their pegs, trays, exercise books etc). I explained that I haven't had time to do it but that I'd stay as late as I could and do as much as possible before leaving. She reminded me that we were warned that there wouldn't be time to do it during inset. I explained that I had already booked our flights to Australia before that email was sent and that we couldn't reschedule them that late even if we wanted to. She then said that I should keep in mind that it was paid holiday time and that it is my responsibility to ensure that the classroom is ready before the children arrive on Wednesday. There is no way I can possibly get the classroom ready to the expected standard in time because the building is not open long enough. I will go in at 7.30 to do an hour before inset tomorrow and Wednesday and dh has managed to rearrange his work hours for tomorrow so I can stay until 18:00 and I'll work through my lunch break but that’s still only 4 hours and it’s much, much too much work to do in that time. For context, the example classroom we were all taken to look at as part of the training today took the teacher 6 full days to clean and set up during the break and that wasn't finished. We also only have 1 printer and 1 laminator in the school so there are long waits to get access to them.

I am so stressed and I feel like I’m already failing my class and my own dc. I’m already behind and overwhelmed even though it’s the first day of term. I had a panic attack this evening. I feel like this is my fault for not knowing that I was supposed to work for a week during the holiday but no one told me until it was way too late. Is it common practice here to work during your holiday if it is a paid holiday? I have a salary which is paid in equal instalments throughout the year so I was fully paid for August even though I didn’t work a single day. We have similar arrangements in Australia but my schools there always gave us time to do the admin and class setup before the children arrived (and didn’t have such specific requirements regarding classroom setup). WIBU to go on holiday and not go to work to clean and set up my classroom during the break?

Ah, so literally the mandated contact teaching time & training days. Which equates to only working 6 1/2 hour days for 53% of the year...

So no planning, marking, report writing, or anything is required, and teachers all log off at half 3! Sounds perfect.

You know that's not how it works, no one believes that they are only required to work those 1265 hours. The prep work just isnt directed, and is as much as is necessary.

In the same way a chef works longer hours than a restaurant is open, a lawyer works longer hours than a court day, a film star works longer hours than the duration of a film. Jobs that include 'presentation' almost always have fixed hours for that, with longer and more flexible prep in top, as is required.

I don't believe that teachers should (or necessarily need to) work every weekend, every evening, work for weeks through the holidays etc, and I dont want them working themselves into the ground, but clearly the job is going to be longer than the classroom day, and like any other professionals, they can choose how and when they do that.

I think wall displays created solo by teachers aren't very useful. Make your lesson plans for the first few weeks of term focused on things that can become wall displays organically. The children are more engaged with them if they all helped to create them

I think like nursing, teaching is a vocation.

Both nursing and teaching are jobs. Calling them vocations is an excuse for not properly paying people for doing vital work.

OP there are lots of non-toxic schools around and if this is typical of your school I'd consider moving. I'd have been fuming if I was in scheduled meetings 8.30-5 on both inset days.

Teacher here, we have to do the same. The head does not tell us we have to, but there is no other time. I go in during the holidays so this includes every half term as our displays are changed every term. It does take a day or two. Also we get paid for the term time we work, it is just spread across hence why we get 'paid' the August.

I feel angry for you. You are entitled to a holiday in full. If a certain classroom standard is expected, you should be allocated paid time to do it.
Also a teacher, but secondary. I do as little as possible over the summer.

I’m a secondary teacher and I don’t! Crazy. Why would it take 3-5 days to set up a classroom in secondary? Assuming you’ve not moved rooms.

I'm going to try to get to sleep now. Thanks for the input everyone. It's quite reassuring to know that I am not the only teacher who didn't go in during the break even if I do regret that now. I wish I'd known, but I didn't and I can't change that. I had such a lovely holiday that I might still have gone anyway even if I could go back and do things differently! I'm teaching a unit about biomes later in the year so I managed to get lots of useful stuff for deserts which I'll use after half term. I will only be in this school until midway through the academic year, so I don't need to worry about this for next year.

This thread is riling me up about displays before bedtime - lol. I think displays are maximum effort minimal reward most if the time. I also find them very hard to do well (it’s not something everyone has a knack for) and last term my TA and I put up some really shit displays between us 😂 we weren’t making a point just neither of us are very good at it. I had one comically bad one up for a while that we were getting the class involved with (they didn’t quite produce the A* displays we hoped they might but it was fun) and one day a succession of inspector types came in and I had to say ‘oh yes look at our lovely class display’ as if daring them to tell me the kids artistic efforts looked shit. No one brought it up.

it’s also really hard to do by yourself (I know this from experience) so I would have given up if I’d come in over the summer.

Hear hear! I love this response.

Also, a teacher should only be required to do tasks they're contracted for, and that can only be done by a teacher. They do not have to do clerical tasks that could be done by admin/support staff - eg cleaning, putting up displays, arranging furniture. The Head should hire support staff to undertake this work. It's akin to asking a doctor to answer the phones on reception or clean the bathrooms out instead of using their time to treat patients, and asking them to do it during their holiday.

The reality is that schools have had their budgets slashed and they can't afford cleaners and other support staff. So teachers tend to pick up the slack for the benefit of the children.

If you can, move to Secondary. There are very few secondary schools where teachers put up with this sort of bullshit.
I have been teaching for 17 years and apart from results day when I was in management I have never been in in the holidays for more than 3 hours to pick up a few bits and tidy my desk.
it is your holiday and there should be no compulsion whatsoever for you to be in school during this time.
and shame on those criticising you for actually taking a holiday. People like you are one of the main reasons for the teacher shortage.

I'm afraid it is an unwritten expectation that teachers (especially primary) work several days over every holiday and half term to prep the classroom. It can't be written into your contract or spelt out in an email because it's your holiday allowance and they can't make you, but basically the job of being a teacher in term time is impossible unless you've sacrificed some of your holiday time beforehand.
This is why it's so frustrating when non teachers tell teachers how lucky they are to have such long holidays. They also seem to think teachers work 9 to 3.30pm. Ha bloody ha. (Ex teacher here. Can you tell?)

Not true @Haffdonga . No sacrificed holiday here. We had a generous allowance of time inset to get organised. Didn’t go in once in the holidays. Same for most of my colleagues. Secondary.

Ex primary teacher here.
You would think you are being pretty reasonable OP and that is why we have such a teacher crisis in the UK.
We were fully expected to come in over the holidays for a few days to clear up and set up for the next class. Everyone did. I don’t know any primary teachers who don’t do at least a day or 2 and the very minimum.
Are teachers respected and appreciated and treated well time work wise in Aus because they really arnt here unless you have an amazing head who is on your side no matter what.
Dont stress though- you didn’t know. Do what you can and then just put in some extra hours during the rest of this week and next to get the rest done. It’s honestly not worth having a panic attack over-you will still be teaching them and they will still be learning, the organising can be done over the week.

I'm a teacher and not once have I gone in for 3 days during the holiday. I haven't been in the past few years but I've not been moving classrooms. Your school sounds harsh to be running inset until 5.30 and not giving you your proper breaks.

OP try to just clear space, do what is essential first. It'll be fine x

Why the hell should you have to go in unpaid to sort the classroom out? In fact why should anyone have to work unpaid hours.

Its obviously an expectation that you will… but why on earth should it be?

^^ and I’m not a teacher but I have had enough of industries expecting work to be done unpaid. It was the same when I worked in the NHS! When I added up all the extra unpaid time I did a week it was almost an extra shift!

@Gymrabbit I'm tempted to try secondary! My masters in teaching is specifically for primary but I have a bachelors degree in physics and a masters in maths from before I decided to train to teach. If the job adverts in my area are anything to go by, I might find a school which would take me even without a secondary PGCE.

@Maymaymay The inset finished promptly at 17.00 today and is supposed to again tomorrow. The school building is open until 18.00 but my childcare arrangements meant I had to leave at 17.30 today.

Right, this time I'm actually going to sleep! Good night and thanks for the perspective.

Cleaning your classroom is ridiculous! I've taught in several different schools (state and private) over the years and I've never had to do that. The school should use some of rent from the summer camp to pay someone (for example the school cleaners) to tidy up the school including your classroom after the camp left.

Since INSET days became a thing I've always had two days before the Autumn term started, with either a half or a full day of those two days as free time to get my classroom ready (noticeboards etc) and do planning. I couldn't get the classroom ready at the end of the previous term because the summer camp would have trashed it left it untidy.

Like others have said, set the furniture up and focus on planning and lesson resources. Then do what you can but by bit.
explsin/ tell headteacher that the displays will be working walls and will have work and resources up as the days and weeks progress.
Could you prepare your laminating at home? Putting it in the pouches etc?

How could you have set up your classroom if it was being used?

I suppose you could have got the printing done though but if your classroom was being used not a lot of work could have been done

So does stuff need to be laminated and printed? Can you spend a few bucks at poundland and use those materials to get your boards up? What about making your boards at home after the buildings closed, rolling them and hanging them the next day. Heck if your ds is old enough ask him to help. I would do Just what required me to be at work (putting out exercises, peg tags ect) and do the rest at home and install quickly the next day. I was a preschool teacher and by doing this was able to usually get my room to "acceptable" in a day. Anyways, your gonna change things up as soon as the kids start anyways and you learn their needs

This is the sort of issue that made me give up my PGCE. There are no end to the expectations on one's time etc.

@Namechange7000 Could you get the keys to the school or could someone let you in out of hours (not that you should have to.)

I painted a school once and they let us have keys to come in and do some of it at night.

She’s wrong - it’s not paid holidays! We are paid for term time only. You are not paid to work in the holidays.

Not really true. Teachers are paid for some of the holidays, but not all.

Teachers do have set hours. It is set in their contracts - 1265 hours over 195 days.

Also not true. These are our directed hours and we are expected to work a number of nondirected hours on top. My contract explicitly says that. We do 6.5 directed hours a day (eg 8.30-3.30 minus lunch) and usually a couple more nondirected.

I don't know any colleagues who don't do a couple of days in class during the summer holiday.

Not going in during the holiday to set the class up would really be frowned on at my school.

Can I recommend buying yourself a cheap laminator then you can laminate stuff at home while watching TV.