Proposed decision: The Cabinet Member for Education and Skills is asked to End the Summer term a day early so that term finishes on Thursday 21 July 2022 instead of Friday 22 July 2022.
In England, local authority-maintained schools operating according to the School Teachers’ Pay and Conditions Document (STPCD) must open for 195 days.
Of these, a maximum of 190 days involve teaching children and young people. The remaining five days are non-teaching days when teachers may be asked to undertake other duties related to their role as a teacher. These are often known as in-service training (INSET) days.
The school term dates for Kent community, voluntary-controlled, community special or maintained nursery schools are determined by KCC and the local authority is the employer.
For the academic year 2021/22, in acknowledgement of the additional Bank Holiday for the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, the DfE has agreed the following position to assist schools and local authorities in their planning:
‘The Spring Bank Holiday in 2022 will be moved to Thursday 2 June and an additional bank holiday on Friday 3 June will see a four-day weekend to celebrate Her Majesty the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee.
‘Many schools will already be on their half-term breaks in the week commencing 31 May, but where the additional bank holiday falls in term time, schools and local authorities (LAs) should observe the bank holidays on 2/3 June and may therefore need to prepare and make any amendments to their published term dates for the academic year 2021/22.
‘We [the DfE] have laid regulations to reduce the minimum number of sessions schools are required to meet in the academic year 2021/2022 and enable everyone to celebrate the Platinum Jubilee of Her Majesty the Queen on 3 June 2022.
‘The Department will review the necessary legislation and, as far as the STPCD is concerned, make an amendment for the September 21 version that reduces the number of days that teachers need to be available to work from 190 (+5 INSET days) to 189 (+5 INSET days) and will also reduce the number of directed hours by 6.5. The total school year will therefore be 194 days.’
In essence, teachers will teach one less day for the academic year 2021/22, down from 195 to 194 (including INSET days), or down from 190 to 189 (excluding INSET days) across 1,258.5 hours as opposed to 1,265 hours of directed time. An extra day of holiday will therefore need to be allocated by KCC as the employer.
Decision type: Key
Reason Key: Affects more than two Electoral Divisions;
Decision status: Recommendations Approved
Division affected: (All Division);
Notice of proposed decision first published: 18/10/2021
Decision due: Not before 16th Nov 2021 by Cabinet Member for Education and Skills
Reason: in order that the proposed decision can be puboished for a minimum of 28 days, in accordance with statutory requirements
Lead member: Cabinet Member for Education and Skills
Department: Education & Young People's Services
Contact: Ian Watts, Assistant Director Education, North 03000 414302 Email: ian.watts@kent.gov.uk Tel: 03000 414302.
Consultees
The proposed decision will be considered by the Children’s, Young People and Education Cabinet Committee on 16 November 2021 and the outcome of that discussion included in the decision paperwork.
Financial implications: There are no direct cost implications arising from the decision on the school calendar. However, there may be a small reduction in school transport costs as term is ending a day earlier.
Legal implications: KCC as the employer must administer these changes enacted by the DfE
Equalities implications: A full EqIA has been completed and presented to the Cabinet Member and CYPE Cabinet Committee as part of the democratic process.