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Original poster

Is it OK for DS school to finish at 1:15pm on last day of term & require me to pick him up?!

209 replies

ChemiseBleu · 02/07/2014 20:38

I am so pissed off with DS's school. I thought that this year they would stop their nonsense of finishing just after lunch on the last day of each term and registering them in for the afternoon but requiring you to pick them up early. Hmm

In previous years they did this on the last day of every term and I assumed that the new "tightening" up of rules re taking DC out of school would mean they wouldn't dare do it this year...

They mention earlier in the year on the calendar a picnic at 12 noon that parents are welcome too and then start gradually drip feeding into the newsletters that you are welcome to take them home after the picnic and then BOOM today - dates for July:

Wednesday 23rd Picnic 12 noon BREAK UP 1:15pm

This means extra time off work for me. Angry

--This from the school who wrote to me before the end of the first half term with a calculation of DS's attendance after he had had 3 days off with a bug (M-W) and then been sent home at lunch time on a F after being sick in his lunch. Considering the attendance was matched against 2 half weeks and about 4 full weeks then yes it did come out at

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CharlesRyder · 02/07/2014 20:40

IME of 12 years teaching it is totally standard to have half days at the end of term.

GerbilsAteMyCat · 02/07/2014 20:42

My children's primary finished at 11:30.
2 hours of school.
What was the point?

HarveySchlumpfenburger · 02/07/2014 20:43

Sounds standard to me. It's not like they're actually going to be doing anything worthwhile on the last afternoon of the school year after a picnic lunch.

SummerSazz · 02/07/2014 20:44

At our school, full terms always finish at 2pm and half terms at normal pickup.

LIZS · 02/07/2014 20:46

not unusual ime . Could a friend take him home for a few hours after picnic ? Had you planned to go along ?

vickibee · 02/07/2014 20:46

I agree Op, working parents are not considered and they are doing it for their convenience. I wouldn't be able to pick up at that time either

HeartsTrumpDiamonds · 02/07/2014 20:46

School is school, not childcare arranged for the parents' convenience... However I do agree it takes some planning and organisation which can be annoying!

MaxsMummy2012 · 02/07/2014 20:47

Our school - also non academy - always finishes at 1:30 on the last day of term. Standard practise in most schools I think.

OorWullie · 02/07/2014 20:48

I started primary 20 years ago, and all the way thrpugh that the last day of term has always been a half day.

DS' school finished early last Friday as well.

It's always been the way as far as i knew.

ouryve · 02/07/2014 20:50

A lot of schools do it. DS2's doesn't, but does knock off early after school day school fetes etc.

DS1's school chucks out after lunch every Friday.

DinoSnores · 02/07/2014 20:53

In Edinburgh, I think all schools have a half day every Friday.

Finola1step · 02/07/2014 20:54

Our school finishes at 2pm on the last day of term.

It's a throwback to the days when all the local secondary schools would finish for Christmas, Easter and the summer on the same day, at the same time. Much aggro, inter school fighting would ensue. Egg and flour throwing was the norm.

The local primary schools would finish at least an hour earlier to ensure that younger children were not caught up in the nonsense, which can get a bit scary if you're 5.

Local secondary schools now stagger their finish days and times to reduce this. Staff can be seen escorting pupils onto the local buses to disperse them out of the area. The most we see now is water fights. But I still wouldn't want to go back to everyone finishing at the same time, on the same day!

PatriciaHolm · 02/07/2014 20:58

Pretty standard I think. We finish a couple of hours early too.

teacherwith2kids · 02/07/2014 21:00

We have perfect storm on last day of school - it involves my school ending (later), DD's school finishing (earlier), DS returning from long distance school trip at a varibale time which could overlap with either of these, and DD having a dance exam requiring parental taxi after her breakup time but before mine. We have 1 car, and DH works an hour's train commute away.

It's not going to be pretty. I will scrape the barrel of 'please could you....' favours one last time, knowing that I can repay everyone during the summer holiday....

So yes, it's inconvenient. It's what reduces me to begging favours from the slightest acquaintance, let alone friends. But it's survivable...just!

IrianofWay · 02/07/2014 21:02

Annoying but school is school, and childcare is childcare. Tough! Sorry. Btw I sympathise. Have worked full time through 13 yrs of it. My youngest is off to secondary in September, thank god!!!!!

2kidsintow · 02/07/2014 21:02

IME of 12 years teaching it is totally standard to have half days at the end of term.

I think it depends on where you live.

IME of 14 years teaching I have not known a single school in my county to have any half days at all.

Bunbaker · 02/07/2014 21:05

None of the schools round here have a half day at the end of term, so no, it isn't standard.

Itsfab · 02/07/2014 21:07

Our primary finishes half an hour earlier at the end of term and normal at half term.
My son's secondary finishes an hour early and it is chaos as there is no bus so 1100 kids all needing picking up at the same time.

noblegiraffe · 02/07/2014 21:08

My secondary always has a half day on the last day of each full term. Not sure why, but it's possibly because the kids are so bonkers and hyped up that even spending just the morning in a classroom with them is pushing it.

TortoiseUpATreeAgain · 02/07/2014 21:10

"school is school, and childcare is childcare"

Yes, but if school is school then it ought to be being school; the school in the OP is registering the children for an afternoon session (so counting that session as one of the minimum number they are legally required to offer) but then kicking the children out immediately afterwards (so not actually offering the session of education at all). That's not being school or childcare; it's actively dishonest. If you want to send children home at lunchtime then do it before afternoon registration so that you are accurately reflecting the number of sessions of education those children are receiving.

mrz · 02/07/2014 21:12

In over 30 years I've never experienced primary's breaking up early (not so secondaries). We always have our leaver's assembly on the final afternoon.

Original poster
ChemiseBleu · 02/07/2014 21:12

Annoying but school is school, and childcare is childcare. - the thing is though I thought that there is a legal requirement for 380 sessions = half days?

How is it ok for one of these sessions to be 15 mins?

Surely this should be changed now that the possibility of 10 days off school being granted by headteachers is vastly reduced.

I was interested to see that other schools do this as none of the other local primaries seems to & none of my other friends in other places have this.

As it happens I am going to pick up my friend's DS along with mine at 1:15pm as she would have to take a half day whereas I am lucky to be freelance/flexible.

I think the "they aren't going to be doing anything" is not a great reason as you could then apply that to the morning of that day, or then the previous afternoon, previous morning etc...Grin

OP posts:
IwishIwasmoreorganised · 02/07/2014 21:13

I've only heard of one school around here doing it.

Thank goodness ours don't!

Original poster
ChemiseBleu · 02/07/2014 21:14

yy TortoiseUpATreeAgain - exactly - very dishonest Hmm

OP posts:
TravelinColour · 02/07/2014 21:14

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