NEW CONTINGENCY arrangements have been agreed to allow schools make up for time lost due to severe weather conditions and other unforeseen circumstances.
The rules – due to be issued by the Department of Education today – give schools a new flexibility on holiday periods.
However, they also mean that parents and teachers will have to make provision for shorter breaks when booking holidays in February and over Easter.
From the beginning of the new school year, mid-term breaks and Easter holidays can be cut by three days to allow schools to make up for time lost due to any unforeseen closures. This follows the severe winter weather when many schools lost more than a week of tuition time.
The circular says that in the event of school closures due to severe weather conditions, the February mid-term break may be reduced by up to three days “subject to the requirement that all schools must be closed on the Thursday and Friday of the week in which this break falls”.
The Easter break may be cut by up to three days by the school remaining open up to and including the Wednesday preceding the Easter weekend. All schools must be closed on the Thursday and Friday immediately preceding Easter.
The following are details of school closures in the forthcoming school year:
October 2011 mid-term break
All schools will close from Monday, October 31st, to Friday, November 4th.
Christmas 2011
All schools will close on Thursday, December 22nd, which will be the final day of the school term, and will reopen on Monday, January 9th.
February 2012 mid-term break
All primary schools will close on Thursday, February 16th, and Friday, February 17th.
However, primary schools may use three discretionary days to extend this break to an alternative option of a five-day break from Monday, February 13th, to Friday, February 17th, unless changes are required as part of contingency arrangements to make up for time lost due to unforeseen closures.
Post-primary schools will close from Monday, February 13th, to Friday, February 17th, unless changes are required as part of contingency arrangements to make up for unforeseen time lost.
Where contingency arrangements are required, a school may reduce the length of the February mid-term break by remaining open up to and including Wednesday, February 15th.
Easter 2012
All schools will close on Friday, March 30th, which will be the final day of the school term, unless changes are required as part of contingency arrangements to make up for time lost due to unforeseen closures.
Where contingency arrangements are required, a school may reduce the length of the Easter break by remaining open up to and including Wednesday, April 4th.
All schools will reopen on Monday, April 16th.
