Devon Parents react to school holiday length report

Some parents have expressed concerns over the length of summer holidays and child care costs, following a report recommending they be shortened.

The report on tackling post-pandemic education inequalities, which forms part of a project funded by the Nuffield Foundation, said it was time to consider a reform to school calendars.

Prof Lee Elliot Major, from the University of Exeter, one of the report’s authors, said the structure of the academic year dated back to Victorian times and it was “time to review this”.

Several parents in Devon told BBC News they felt the school holidays should be four weeks long instead of six.

Gail Parrott from Kingsbridge said she believed the summer holidays were too long and it could be difficult for parents to entertain children when the weather wasn’t good.

The 59-year-old grandmother of three said: “The children themselves as well I think get out the routine and I definitely think it would be better if it were shorter.”

She said one benefit of the current system was that it gave children a longer rest but questioned if they really needed it.

Alistair Dewhirst, a volunteer driver on the Kingsbridge & District Light Railway said he believed it would be better if the holiday started at different times around the country so that there wasn’t the massive pressure on his attraction from the end of July to the end of August.

He said: “Childcare costs are a huge problem for all families … it will be lovely if the government had the money to make child care costs cheaper but sadly it appears they don’t.”

Natalie Hughes, 37, from Plymouth, has two children aged six and eight.

She said the length of the school summer holiday caused difficulties because it broke their routines.

She said: “I think they should be about four weeks that would be kind of perfect even that is a little too long but… the teachers need a decent break but six weeks is just far too long.

“Because it’s been such a long break… my daughter doesn’t like going into school but I think it’s made worse because she’s had that big period of time off so yeah it is a real struggle to get then back into school.”

Manisa Turland, 37, also said she believed the summer holidays should be four weeks long.

The mum of two said: “We obviously have a big social group with lots of parents and they all have to take time off their annual leave.”

She added summer clubs were expensive and not everybody could afford it.

“The benefit is I’m spending family time … I mean there is a lot of free stuff that you can do but again I think it’s more of the annual leave issue that a lot of parents have to deal with.”

Tracey Robins, 61, from Chudleigh, has two grandchildren and said having a six week holiday makes childcare difficult.

“I think four weeks yes would be better that way,” she said.

“If you’re not working you do get to spend more time as families but as I say … if you’re not working as well but it is difficult fitting everything in.”

Lizzie Hughes, 33, said she struggled with annual leave during the school holidays.

The mum of two said: “A lot of us have young children so trying to cover the summer holidays, even if we had enough leave is very difficult.”

She added childcare could be expensive.

Ms Hughes suggested having a four week summer holiday with an extra week at Christmas and an extra week at either Easter or October would work better.

The Department for Education said the academic year was structured to provide plenty of time for holidays and schools had flexibility to plan term dates.