Do you disagree with the Longer school hours proposed?

[aproudmum]

If like me for many reasons do not - can you please sign and share this petition -
you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/change-of-hours-for-schooling

[Goldmandra]

School hours of 9.00am - 6.00pm would mean that, from the age of 9, children in our village would be out of the house from 8.00am to 7.00pm.

This is purely and simply about pushing parents into working full time by making sure their children are out of the way.

It will restrict the choice of activities children can engage in to those available in their schools and at weekends. Children whose parents life apart often don't get the chance to attend weekend activities so they lose out completely.

I'm all for schools offering a wider range of after school activities and for children not having two transitions per afternoon where one is possible but we also need to acknowledge their right to choice, to a family life and to opportunities to relax properly at the end of the school day.

Getting home at 7.00, just in time for bed is not desirable and certainly shouldn't be imposed across the board.

Michael Gove honestly believes that his status as a parent trumps everyone else's right to make decisions about their own children and the knowledge and expertise of thousands of professionals in childcare, teaching and child development. His level of ignorance is terrifying!

Signed.

[babybythesea]

DD goes to a tiny rural school, in the back end of nowhere. Most of the schools round here are very small, and widely spaced out.
Who is going to be around to teach all these wonderful skills, like music, or art?
Maybe in a city or even a suburban area you would have enough experts available to ensure that all the schools have people able to go in and teach a variety of interesting things. Round here, one school would get the gym teacher, say. And then either you have to bus loads of kids over to that school, or loads of kids don't get to do that activity because they are at the wrong school. Not to mention that few of the schools locally are big enough for school halls etc. Which means that there are activities the kids simply can't do in school.
My girl loves swimming. They do go with school but it's not that effective -too many kids, not enough swimming teachers, fair distance to travel to pool. So she goes to her own lessons after school. I don't want her in school, missing the chance for things like this, and Brownies, in order to have a school run art club where she sits and colours for two hours. I can guarantee this is what it would be, as logistics would make much else nigh on impossible.

I've signed!

[Forago]

No, it's no different from normal wrap around care and then At least more options for people who need it.

[Goldmandra]

No, it's no different from normal wrap around care

It is very different in that it would be compulsory.

[TamerB]

I will sign it-I think it is a dreadful idea.

[morethanpotatoprints]

I am so glad we H. ed

This is wrong on so many levels, for so many people.
Just because it makes child care easy, doesn't mean it will suit the majority of families.
Fair enough if parents and children are given the option, but certainly compulsory is unfair.

[Pointeshoes]

Signed !

[MigGril]

I think it's a very bad idea, so it may make things easier for fulltime working parents. But what about the kids, DD it's tired after school and wants to do stuff they don't get too do at school. It would spell the end to so many after school activities as well. I don't see schools being able to provided all these other activities and I'd object to it being compulsory.

What is needed its more good after school child care for those that need it.

[mummymeister]

this has nothing whatsoever to do with education or giving more to children. it is all about cutting benefits to all adults full stop. if your kids are in school from 8.30 until 6 then you can take a 9 - 5 job. that is the agenda here. yes, it may be what some folk do now but that is by choice, their choice, not because it is the law. it looks great on paper doesn't it - music lesson followed by football match, followed by chess and home work club. but the reality is this will get no extra funding and it will be lots of kids sitting around doing bugger all or watching videos. think last day of summer term every day after school. like a lot of what Gove says and does ill thought out and bonkers.

[Goldmandra]

ill thought out

I don't think it's ill thought out. I think it's a very carefully thought out policy solely designed solely to push parents into work, thinly veiled as a policy to improve educational outcomes and a significant proportion of the population will be taken in by the ludicrous assertion that their children will be receiving the same provision as those in private schools.

They don't give two hoots about educational outcomes. They just want more people to work full time at the expense of the well being of their children.

[woollybobs]

I think it could be a good thing for working parents. One drop off and they are at the same place all day. No worry about cm or after school care.

Lots of children have a 8-6 day its long and they get shoved from place to place. Some parents have no choice! At least this way they would be at the same place and the parent would feel they are dropping their child at school.

Of course I don't think it should be compulsory and it should be parents choice if they need the extra hours.

[SaggyOldClothCatPuss]

Its all very well trying to push people back into work, but where are the jobs going to come from?

[rollonthesummer]

Is this new wraparound childcare going to be free?

[ApocalypticBlackHorseman]

I doubt it will happen, it's unaffordable.

[Retropear]

Have signed as I kind of like being with and seeing my kids as terribly old fashioned as that is.

I also don't think school buildings are healthy places for kids to spend that amount of time in,Eton different story.That said even if they were offering leafy Eton style buildings when would my kids get to play outside on their bikes with their friends,play the piano,go to Cubs,play,chill etc?

Also I'm already royally f**d off with this gov saying that I can't feed my kids the lunches of my choosing,take them on affordable holidays or be a Sahp. Restricting the time I get to see them on top is quite frankly a joke.

[VideoEtTaceo]

Schools are not for the purpose of child care, they are there to provide education. I'm a teacher - you can really see the difference in pupils in a period 6 lesson as opposed to an earlier lesson. It would be very hard to achieve meaningful learning with extended days. I personally already feel very tried at the end of a school day (even without evening prep and marking) so the students must feel eve more drained.

[rollonthesummer]

As it stands, this could mean...

Compulsory schooling for all, 8-6

Compulsory before/after school sports/music/drama

Optional wraparound care (which many schools already have or don't have because it's not viable/wanted.) This already exists, it is not news.


It could be...

Run by outside providers (this will not be funded by the government-parents will, no doubt be charged!)

Run by teachers (which would necessitate dismantling the teachers' pay and conditions and would have a huge knock-on on the quality of teachers and teaching in the future. If they want teachers teaching from 8-6 so that parents can work, you can kiss goodbye to school holidays in the future; if Gove has sorted the problem of term-time childcare, Gove won't want working parents using those pesky holidays as an excuse not to get a full time job! Will private schools be following suit..?!

Notice Gove has not offered up any suggestions about how I he intends for this to be implemented. He's just letting the teachers object, so he can comment on now workshy they are later, and a handful of working parents rub their hands together with glee thinking they're about to be hundreds of pounds better off a month without all those childcare costs.

Tell us exactly what you have in mind, Mr G...

[Rooners]

1. I don't know what the new proposals are, so if someone could provide a link to those it would help - thank you

1. The petition intro is really poorly worded and seems to have been written by someone without a clue what is really going on. I'm not signing anything so atrociously put together unless someone can verify that this person actually has a point.

[Rooners]

I mean it's all about moats and broken Britain. I don't give a stuff about moats.

[SarahJessicaFarter]

My school day was from 8am until 4pm. We spent the whole of Wednesday afternoons playing sport and Art was also a double period. I also often stayed with the boarders to do homework (ok so private school). Was always home by 6. Fed, watered and nothing further to do homework wise in the evening. Never had much to do at weekends, until GCSE/A level time and had longer hols.

In short, my time at home was quality time without academic pressures. Done properly, I don't have an issue with this.

Prepares to be flamed!

[FrigginRexManningDay]

I cant see how this would work. What about children with sn or a learning impairment? Are they going to pay for teaching assistants and sn teachers?

When would children get time to just play, relax , watch a tv programme? Stupid man seeing children as a problem that needs solving.

[Rocksie]

I work 3 days a week and my children go to a childminder after school. I am against extending the school day because;
a) children will struggle to learn for that length of time
b) less family time
c) if a child doesn't enjoy school for a particular reason eg bullying, they will be unhappier for longer
d) they will miss out on a variety of non school activities
e) our school doesn't provide lunches, when are they supposed to eat a hot meal?
f) will teachers be paid more? Who's paying?
g) when will teachers plan their day/mark work?
h) more electricity etc being used with school open longer
i) some people out of jobs, childminders etc
I could go on!

[Retropear]

Tough Young Teachers showed students working in utter shit holes,one school even had it's pupils standing up to eat.There is no way on environment alone is this a good idea.Adults shouldn't spend hours in an environment like that let alone kids.

State schools are a world away from the private sector.How about Gove spends a bit more money on decent school buildings before he starts limiting the hours we get to spend with our children.

[MrsYoungSalvoMontalbano]

Would be far better if hwk was done in school so that when a child comes home, they can switch off form school work. And this would be far, far better for those children who are not privileged to have yummy mummies to ferry them, around to ballet and pony club. But... what justification would those mummies have for not working - suspect some of the backlash comes from there...

[rollonthesummer]

8am until 4pm sarahjessicafarter? That won't help people get a job!!