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

I can see the pros and cons to the plan.

I’m an ex-teacher (lots of reasons but primarily work/life balance) and I would say that in the Summer Holidays there was always quite a bit of work to do to set up the classroom (Primary) for the new class that was about to come up. Most teachers I know would be in a few days over the holidays prepping trays, displays etc, and would be at home labelling things, laminating etc. in spare moments and getting their planning sorted. Especially if the teacher is changing year group.

In a six week break that seemed not too bad, but in a four week break I wonder if using some of those days for prep would start to feel like a bit of a squeeze on their “break”, especially if the teacher wants to go on an actual holiday? The last thing teaching needs is to lose more teachers through burn out.

I appreciate they’d have 2 week holidays at other times instead of 1 but I don’t know if that has the same restorative effect…?

I think it is a very bad idea.
The number of school days remain the same, but the holidays would be squashed into 4 weeks in the summer.
It means more problems for parents coordinating time off at work.
Of course the other holidays get longer, but you can't play outside in December as easily as August. (well aware it can be cold in August etc).
Not everyone can holiday abroad, etc
In my view it only works for those who can go abroad.
For older children, not easy to go away at Easter or whitsun, when there are exams ahead, whereas the summer comes after exams.
In France schools close for much longer in the summer, and they do not seem to have any problems.

No teachers don't get paid for the holidays. They are paid for 195 days per year if full time. But if course work way over that

Teachers don't get paid for the holidays is a bit far fetched. It's a salaried job. As a package. It's just somehow teachers see themselves differently than the rest of the working population regarding this (in order to defend their 12 weeks)

absolutely terrible idea to make xmas longer - worst holiday of the year by far! dark, cold, kids hyper costs a fortune to do anything - long enough at two weeks.

It is unrealistic in the current world we live in to expect parents to take six weeks off.

many, many children end up sitting at home gaming or having seriously sub optimal holiday experiences - it's all very well if you can afford lovely holiday clubs - or even if you can barely afford them but the kids enjoy them.

Be realistic for many children it's just lots of screens and parents v stressed trying to feed and entertain their children on low income

In some parts of the UK a third of children - more even - live in poverty. ]

I am massively in favour of a more relaxed approach to school - parents should be able to take breaks when it suits them within reason ie. one holiday per school year.

I hate the current system but I dont think the six week holiday works for anyone.

If anything, add time on in May june

at the moment in england we have not a single holiday in June and july which is literally best time of the year.
!!!!!

Whenever an adult suggests this I always wonder if as a child they complained during the 6 week holiday that it was too long. I doubt it!

It's actually 13 weeks of holiday. And I don't need to defend it.

re. teachers - teachers work conditions need to change anyway so we could factor that in (if we are designing a better system overall) - teachers need a lot more flexibility and more out of class hours to prep etc they should work more like non teachers - allowed to take time off etc when they need to

if they had better working conditions we could retain more teachers as well.

@flumposie I know lots of children who really struggle in the long summer break - my own daughter who is autistic and can't cope with the lack of routine for so long but also can't access holiday clubs

I know many, many children living in tower blocks who are bored out of their minds with no money for nice holidays/ holiday clubs etc. We dont live in a world sadly where children frolic happily on their streets in a big gang or run wildly on beaches all summer.

I believe in having proper breaks from school time but such a long stretch is massively shit for disadvanteged children.

I am massively in favour of a more relaxed approach to school - parents should be able to take breaks when it suits them within reason ie. one holiday per school year.

Would that include parents who also work in a school? If so how would that work?

But they don’t get paid. Their salary is pro rata. They get about 6 weeks holiday a year, paid. In effect the whole summer is unpaid. If they cut it down to say 4 weeks, salaries would need to be increased.

I have no idea how we are going to cope with the 6 week holiday. I’m NHS and I am only allowed leave around on call shifts and even then it’s not a guarantee, sometimes I know my leave a few weeks in advance tops. I can’t imagine DH and I will ever have leave together for the next 10 years. All the clubs I’ve seen are 9-4 without wrap around. It’s a disaster for working parents really.

Despite this, I think losing the 6 week holiday would be the final nail in the coffin for teachers in an already overstretched, underfunded system, so for that reason, I think it should stay. I just wish there were proper provisions over summer that didn’t cost a fortune!

6 weeks is way too long for many reasons, I welcome the suggested change.

It works really well for us teachers thanks very much.

The schools near me already only have 5 weeks off during the summer, it works quite well as the additional week in half term is off season so holidays are cheaper. This would probably change if everyone had the same though.

I would like to keep the 6 weeks even though I find them long. Lots of countries have 3 months, plus all the other holidays and their kids aren't failing.

You may not like it but it's a fact.

It's always been factored into salary and contract negotiations.

About 15 years ago (give or take) a challenge to maternity pay meant that teachers had to have 4 weeks of paid holiday as previously they weren't getting any. Because teachers weren't paid for holidays.

Didn't change pay or any other conditions. It was a purely a paper exercise but it underlined the fact that teachers were not paid for holidays.

Teachers do not need to defend their employment package.

You need to think about why if it's so cushy there is such a shortage of teachers 🤷🏻

it works quite well as the additional week in half term is off season so holidays are cheaper. This would probably change if everyone had the same though.

It might be cheaper for those who can afford to go away, but what about the families who can't? Adding a week to another half term just means a lot of children spend the week sat indoors (usually on screens) as the weather is too miserable to go out, and paying for indoor activities is too expensive.

At DD1’s school, it’s 5 and half weeks in the summer, 2 weeks in October for the last 2 years.
Many families were able to travel abroad in the second week off in October as it was way cheaper than going in the summer. If it’s 4 weeks and the children get an extra 2 weeks off at other time in the year where the time is decided by each county so not necessarily same week for the whole country then it’ll be nice. That way parents will still get holiday clubs if needed as their whole county will be off and others can get cheaper holidays, etc

Where did you hear of that plan? I think 6 weeks is too short already!

I couldn't agree more .

I think this would be bad for lots of businesses - everyone would want the same few weeks of leave in the summer, and tourism/hospitality would find their seasons cut short. Prices for holidays would rocket.

Personally, I think 6 weeks is fine. Sometimes we get 7, and that feels too long.

We already get 2 weeks in October, and I like that (cheap holidays). I feel DC really need it at that point too, as they are back Mid-august, and don't get a long weekend in September here. So they are normally exhausted by October, especially the little ones.

I wish we got a full week in Feb, as we only get a long weekend. And we don't get any holidays in May, which would be the best time to get them IMO. I'd happily reduce Easter to a week though, two weeks at the start of April is a waste.

I’m curious. For PPs saying the holidays are important to give DC a break - do you all have a SAHP? Because my friends and I (all of whom have 2 parents that work in some capacity) seem to all be doing a hodgepodge of clubs, child minders, family, passing round friends, calling in favours…Hardly a break for the DCs as much as we’d like it to be. The opposite intact, due to massive upheaval in routine.

My Dd is autistic and finds 6 weeks hard. Mind you, she finds Christmas the hardest and that's only 2 weeks!

Very much so.