New school term dates for 2024/25 are set to be approved by the Isle of Wight Council next week, allowing Island families to start planning their holidays.
It is proposed that children will head back to school for the start of the academic year on 2nd September 2024, with the year ending fairly late on 29th July 2025.
The Christmas break will be between 20th December 2024 and 6th January 2025 – a little over 2 weeks.
If approved, schoolchildren will have the following holidays in 2024/25:
- October half term – break up Friday 18th October 2024, returning 4th November 2024
- Christmas – break up Friday 20th December 2024 returning Monday 6th January 2025
- February half term – break up Friday 14th February 2025 returning Monday 24th February 2025
- Easter – break up on Friday 4th April 2025 returning Tuesday 22nd April 2025
- May half term – break up Friday 23rd May 2025 returning Monday 2nd June 2025
Cabinet members are due to meet next Thursday (9th March). It’s at this point that the dates will be finalised.
Why is this all decided by cabinet we’re told this will happen that will happen like it or not
Not just term times but every single thing ,talk about being dominated.
lambs to the slaughter comes to mind
When there are any major changes such as the length of the October half-term, a public consultation is held. In addition, every year, the suggested term dates are proposed to teachers before the paper comes to Cabinet for a decision. This only applies to the schools that sit directly under the Local Authority. Academies and the Free School set their own dates. We always welcome comments from both parents and students. Hope this clarifies?
So possibly over 73 school days lost in the academic year for some. Why so many days? Can understand summer holiday break, Christmas and Easter but what the idea behind the October and February breaks. Not sure they happend in my day.
Why do most schools in England have to have exactly the same term dates as each other? So we all have to pay extortionate fares to go on holiday due to peak demand? Or is it so single parents simply cannot work all year round?
I submitted a FOI to the council last year, and was told the current term structure dates back 300 years to when children had to help work on farmland in the summer months, but any attempt to change it is immediately knocked back from recognised teaching unions.
There is plenty of evidence which proves well beyond doubt that the current term structure is detrimental to childrens education.