Are two-week half-terms a blessing or a curse?

An increasing number of schools are moving to a two-week half-term

As the end of October approaches, teachers and pupils alike are looking forward to the half-term holiday. But in some places, the traditional week off has become a fortnight. What do parents, teachers and experts think?

Unity Schools Partnership has decided to implement a two-week half-term across its eight primaries in Norfolk, following a trial last year.

The partnership, which already operates a two-week holiday in its Suffolk schools, said it was doing so to improve everyone's wellbeing and reduce ill-health absences.

Elsewhere, some other councils, including Nottinghamshire, already have two-week autumn half-term holidays, while others, including Surrey, are soon to adopt them.

In England, maintained schools - those funded and controlled by the local authority - must provide at least 190 days of education a year.

Other schools, including academies, free schools, foundation schools and voluntary-aided schools, have more freedom to set their own term dates.

While many are moving towards two-week autumn half-terms, most of these are shortening the summer holiday by a week to compensate.

That is not happening at Unity's schools, which are instead able to choose how to make up the lost 32.5 hours.

Colman Junior School, in Norwich, which piloted the longer half-term last year, has opted for an extra hour on Wednesdays.

The trust says it carried out two rounds of consultation before extending the half-term break and found most parents (58%) and staff (89%) in favour.

Sarah Garner of Unity Schools Partnership says parents were consulted before the policy was introduced

Its interim chief executive, Sarah Garner, says the autumn term is the "longest and hardest" for both teachers and pupils, and that its schools regularly see a spike in illnesses just before the Christmas break, impacting "wellbeing and more importantly... learning".

Ms Garner acknowledges the move might mean some some families with children at different schools now have to juggle three weeks of childcare, but says most parents have been managing.

Most are able to take advantage of community half-term activities as well as using parental leave, she says.

However, the trust will be organising additional childcare for the second week of the forthcoming half-term.

Abby Simpson (left) and Natalie say they understand why the longer half-term was implemented

Waiting to pick up her children outside Colman Junior School is Abby Simpson.

"It's been OK," she says. "The good thing is that holidays are cheaper in the second week because all the other kids have gone back to school.

"But it's a little bit tricky around childcare sometimes, because it's that longer amount of time to find childcare when I'm working. So it's a sort of mixed bag but, overall, I'd say it's a good thing."

Her friend, Natalie, who does not want to give her surname, says the move actually helped her family situation.

"I think it's a good thing. I'm separated from my daughter's dad so she has a week on, week off. So we both get a week with her."

"But I'm self-employed, so I'm a bit different. So I have to take that week off because the childcare is non-existent in the second week.

"Also, it's a tricky term for most of the students when it's getting dark."

Aaron Rushworth says he fully expected to adjust his life around his son's school requirements

Picking up his son is Aaron Rushworth, 36, who believes the move could help improve teacher retention.

On the extra childcare required, he says: "It's no more than you have to adjust your pattern of life to having children generally.

"It's not saying that I'm impacted negatively; I just build it around having my son around."

He also feels the longer day prevents the need to rush for pick-up time.

Spencer Ward says his family enjoyed spending an extra week together

Spencer Ward's son joined the school last year, so he "was aware of the policy and had planned for it", asking relatives to help out with the second week.

"I think overall it's really beneficial and this extra hour on a Wednesday gives him time to do stuff he wouldn't normally do in school," he says.

"It's extra-curricular, so it's fun stuff. It's music; it might be dancing, or the arts; might be gardening, something he doesn't normally do, and [he] spends time with other kids he doesn't normally spend time with."

While schools and government often emphasise the impact of time away from school on children's learning, Mr Ward does not agree.

"The children need a bit of time to relax as well," he says.

"We know what they're doing curriculum-wise and I think there's enough stuff we can do at home if we need to."

Teacher Michael Burdett says the longer half-term has brought real benefits to wellbeing

Michael Burdett, 31, teaches Year 6 at school and is its maths lead. He is also a parent with school-age children.

After the longer holiday was piloted last year, he noticed a huge drop in staff absence and sickness. Fewer children were ill, too.

And he says small adjustments were made to the curriculum to ensure there was no impact on the children's education.

"I don't think I could consider working somewhere that didn't have the two-week half term now, just because it has such an impact on my wellbeing," he says.

"Having that extra week off really charges me as a teacher again to go forward and be the best teacher I can heading towards that Christmas term.

"I also think it's vitally important for pupils to also rest and recover during that time."

Lee Elliot Major, professor of social mobility at Exeter University, thinks a revision of the school year is called for.

"We need a rebalanced school calendar that reflects the realities of modern family life — supporting working parents, reducing holiday hunger, and ensuring pupils don't fall behind over the long break," he says.

"Reducing summer holidays and extending breaks during the autumn term would potentially help to reduce learning loss for pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds, spread workloads more evenly for teachers, and relieve the childcare burden that weighs heavily on working families during the summer."

The extra week off has cut teacher absence at Unity's schools

However, parenting blogger Ruth Davies Knowles says she approves of children having as many holidays as possible, but not the longer half-term.

Until all schools adopt the policy, she says, families could have to juggle childcare issues over a longer period.

Up until 2013, head teachers could grant absences of up to 10 days for a family holiday in "special circumstances", and she would like this policy brought back to allow families to take time off when it suits them.

"Whenever we talk about school absences, head teachers always come on and tell us how vital it is that children are at school," she says.

"What sort of message does it send out when they're saying every day at school is important, but you can have an extra week off?"

Schools can choose to make up the lost time through extra-curricular activities

The charity Coram Family and Childcare says more needs to be done about holiday childcare after finding fewer providers available over the half-term breaks.

It found particular gaps in provision for older children, those with special educational needs and disabilities, and those with parents working non-typical hours.

The average price of childcare for children between five and 11 was £179.33 per week for holiday clubs and £233.83 for childminders.

Chris McGovern, chairman of the Campaign for Real Education, is concerned about the impact to learning of the move.

Some of Unity's schools have opted to extend the school day by 10 minutes, but he dismisses this as "a conjuring trick", saying that if a longer half-term is to work, a week must be cut from the summer holiday.

"The children need to be in school, and they need to be in school when they're fresh and alert, and at the end of the school day, 10 minutes is not really going to help," he says.

"Look, for middle-class parents, maybe it would work. But for many mums and dads, they've got to go to work themselves; kids are hanging around.

"I think it's pretty dangerous territory."

Asked by the BBC how many schools in England were operating a two-week half-term, the Department for Education did not respond.

However, a spokesperson says local authorities and schools, not the government, set their own term dates, so already have the flexibility to change the length of holidays if teachers and parents want to.

"Every school day is vital to ensure every child, no matter their background, can achieve and thrive," they say.

"While academies have the flexibility to change the length of holidays that best suit their community, it is of utmost importance that no child loses out on essential learning time."