To think 4 weeks summer is ok

[comeonlabour]

So as the title suggests, if the plans do go ahead to make summer hols 4 weeks I for one am not against it. I always think 6 weeks is way too long so 4 is more manageable

Also we will have longer half terms of 2 weeks in some cases instead of 1 so all good

Anyone else feel the same/agree with me

Six weeks is a complete pita for childcare. Two weeks off each covers four weeks so that would be better. I appreciate other people manage to do stuff as a family etc.

If this does happen, then the 4 weeks will have to be moved to July rather than August or primary and secondary schools may have different holidays. Our whole exam system - the exams, the marking, the results, A-levels, UCAS - is all based around the current academic year.

@Elephantswillnever
"Six weeks is a complete pita for childcare. Two weeks off each covers four weeks so that would be better. I appreciate other people manage to do stuff as a family etc."
But it's the same number of school days and holidays. It's just that the holidays are moved to October / February and Christmas, when the weather is not as good. Older children have exams in June, so extra holiday in May is out of the question.
Everybody will be trying to squash their summer holiday into the same 4 weeks (unless different schools have a different 4 weeks, but then you may have children with different holidays).
Unless you are fortunate to go abroad in those days out of season, then having your holiday in October is definitely not as good.
I speak as someone who worked first part time, and then full time, with my DH also working, and yes, we have been away in October, etc. and have had to juggle holidays at other times. Cornwall in October is not nearly as good.....
But during the summer there are a few summer camps. We did this 2 years running, for one week (for 2 out of 3 DC, as youngest was too young). It was expensive, yes, which is why we only did it twice.
However, it is easier to get childminders and other family members to look after DC during the summer, knowing they can take them outside for quite a bit of time.

There are generally more holiday club options in the summer holidays though compared to other times of year.

not everyone will be able to take the same time off work so less people may be able to get time off during the summer which could make childcare harder or ability to enjoy time as a family.

the pressure on airports/roads etc as well as holiday prices will be higher if everyone is trying to travel at the same time. If schools don’t all have the same weeks it will be hard if you have children at different schools/want to see friends or relatives with children at different schools.

higher pressure on exam marking. If teachers get less time off in the summer they may be less inclined to do marking as combined with prep for next school year they won’t be left with much holiday.

will make it harder for people who have family abroad to visit them/ spend time with them as less likely to have holiday overlap/restricted in length of time you can go etc.

the school years will all merge in each other a lot more with a shorter break.

Children need time to focus on less academic activities -sport / creativity etc and the summer holidays allow time for that.

the solution is probably more free activities/camps during the summer holidays. Obviously comes at a cost but will hope with both childcare issues and keeping the poorer/more vulnerable children engaged so that their learning doesn’t regress. Schools are sitting there empty so the space is available so it’s the people to run it that is going to be the main cost but there will be lots of students looking for summer work/ could introduce schemes to bring in overseas students etc.

For you that may well work but for thousands it may not. Think about families that have family abroad they go visit every year. They may need that time to travel and actually visit.

talking about travel, the entirety of the UK families who take holidays, both here and abroad, would all need to travel in just that 4 week window

without people attending places of interest, they’d cease to exist and visiting only weekends or those sole 4 weeks is not enough

kids need to decompress, have fun and just be kids. Didn’t you have a relaxed and fun filled childhood? Lived mine. Seemed to last forever (certainly more than a measles 4 weeks!)

what might be better option if you’re coming from a child care perspective is some programmes that are more affordable for low income families so they can take advantage of the child care.

It's interesting that other countries who do better than us in educational terms tend to have longer holidays not shorter and also start formal school later.

It shows that the support systems for what happens before they go to school, and what happens in school holidays (i.e. good value childcare, holiday schemes, good pre-school, support for parental leave, help for those on lower incomes) are key.

So we should be looking at other things if kids are suffering negative outcomes from a six week summer holiday, not the length of the holiday itself.

@shearwater2 but the countries ranked below us also have longer summer holidays too so I am not sure it's easy to conclude longer holidays are better

You’ll still have to find the same amount of childcare though. You’d just have to find it in February and October when there are probably far fewer holiday clubs running!

Very good point. From a quick google search very few countries have less than 6 weeks - Thailand, South Korea and potentially some African ones but these countries also have better weather all year round

Nothing will be ‘done about’ holiday prices-it’s supply and demand.

If the summer is cut to 4 weeks, it will be much much worse.

You’ll be paying much more than you do now for your summer break and you’ll have the added bonus of sitting in a 12-hour tailback on the motorway either side of your holiday as well because everyone else will be on the road then as well.

True, but that makes the point for me - it's not the holidays in themselves.

Couple of points.

The "well teachers don;t get paid for holidays" is just semantics. You earn X amount a year, are contracted to Y days work, and get paid your salary in 12, monthly chunks just like everyone else. Literally nobody cares about the wording of your contract and that you are technically only paid for classroom days. By all means ask for more money if you think you are underpaid, but the whole "teachers are not paid for holidays" is such a ridiculous argument and one which loses you support.

Also - where are all these teachers working all holidays? I live next door to a primary school in Scotland and can see into school from my living room. There are never any teachers preparing classrooms and cleaning or whatever else people have claimed they do during the summer break. School finishes at lunchtime on the last day of the summer term in June, the building is locked and deserted by 2pm. You sometimes see a janitor/catetaker, or council workers doing maintenance. I've seen the Head pop in maybe 2 or 3 times over the holidays for 15 minutes to check everything's OK and presumably to pick up mail. The teachers come back for the two in-service/inset days before term starts in August.

Are you on the right thread?

I don’t see what either of your points has to do with moving 2 weeks of the school holidays to a different time of the year?

Sorry no, at our school we get a week in Feb and a week in Oct and it's enough! The weather is crap so a lot of outdoors stuff is off the cards, especially when like it is now, all the green spaces around us are so boggy you can't really walk on them and when you do it's slippery from mud so the kids are stuck indoors, thankfully we use a great holiday club who keep them entertained even when they can't go outside much.
Also as mentioned reducing to 4 weeks would send holiday costs skyrocketing.

Don’t think anyone has said teachers work all holiday but they do often do lesson planning and preparation to some extent. Especially newer teachers who don’t have previous years plans to utilize. I imagine they do it at home.

the long holidays are one of the big teachers perks. There is already a teacher shortage so I can’t imagine reducing the holidays will help.

Totally agree - I am very against shortening the holidays, or re-jigging so you get longer at rubbish times of year like January or February. No thanks.

6 weeks for me please.
If nothing else our school building has no ventilation whatsoever and it’s sweltering in May let alone July and August!
I agree more help should be given to parents with holiday childcare. It’s not fair that parents have to split holiday time in order to have someone to look after their kids.

I agree more help should be given to parents with holiday childcare.

A government scheme to support this would be welcomed with open arms.

Paying university students to help run summer clubs in community centres, church halls, sports clubs, children’s centres. Government subsidies could make it more affordable for parents and then they could pay the students a decent wage as well.

Exactly but making them longer wouldn't make our educational system any better either.

You will still need to cover those two additional weeks of holiday, just at a time of year when there is less likely to be any organised clubs etc!

Irrelevant to this thread but it's not semantics. If you wanted teachers to work more days a year you would have to pay them more because they are not paid for every day of holiday that they get.

I think that poster is deliberately trying to derail a post about moving holiday dates into one that’s moaning about teachers, to be honest.

Good point @Shinyandnew1

I think a downside of a shorter summer break would be higher prices in summer at nearby holiday destinations. There could well also be increased demand for longer haul trips in spring and autumn - with environmental consequences.