Longer school days trialled in Wales education overhaul

A longer school day will be trialled as part of plans to overhaul education to fit in with work patterns and family life.

Fourteen schools will take part in a pilot scheme, adding an extra five hours a week for groups of pupils.

The Welsh government also said it wanted a discussion on school terms, including a shorter summer holiday.

One teaching union called it a "pet project" and warned schools were at "breaking point".

The trial will start in the new year and will run for up to 10 weeks at schools in Blaenau Gwent, Vale of Glamorgan, Rhondda Cynon Taf, Neath Port Talbot and Cardiff.

Head teachers will decide what is offered in the extra hours, but it could be art, music or sport, as well as other school work.

Schools could outsource activities to outside groups, or adapt existing after-school clubs, and £2m is being provided to fund the pilot.

Ministers said the focus would be on helping disadvantaged pupils and schools that had been badly hit by the pandemic.

At Cadoxton Primary School, in Barry, Vale of Glamorgan, Year Six pupils will be offered extra sessions after normal school hours, four days a week and a book club on Friday morning.

There will be a DJ club, cookery club and sport, which will be run by outside providers and school staff and all eligible children will be encouraged to attend.

The head of school, Rhian Milton, said: "It has to be different to what they're offered already in the school day.

"It's not about teachers working longer hours, it's about thinking outside the box to rethink and reframe a structure that's been in place for decades and needs looking at."

She said the aim was to provide equal access to opportunities to the children who have been "really disadvantaged by the pandemic".

Eleven-year-old Gracie said she thought it was a good idea.

"Not many people may be able to afford lots of clubs like this so the fact that it's free is really good", she said.

"I feel happy because I get to see my friends, I get to learn new stuff," said Charlie, 10.

His friend, Taylor, said he would probably "feel a bit more tired than usual" but the activities were "pretty cool".

Melissa Bevan, a secondary school teacher from Bridgend, who is also a mother to two primary-school aged daughters, said she did not want to see any changes to the school day or term dates.

She said: "If you lengthen the school day, for one, it would mean I have to do more planning and prep for my classes, so that would take time away from being with my children.

"Primary-age children and children who are that little, they would be exhausted. [Being] in for five days a week without their parents for that length of time.

"From a staff wellbeing point of view, how you would manage your time effectively to be able to plan and prepare lessons and resources and material? Teachers are already exhausted."

Ms Bevan said she also wanted school holiday times to remain the same, as it allowed families time to relax together as well as go on holiday, but she called for more affordable clubs and playgroups for children of working parents during the break.

Reforming the school day is part of the Labour-Plaid Cymru agreement in the Senedd, and Education Minister Jeremy Miles said the Welsh government was "committed to reducing educational inequalities and improving learner and staff well-being".

He also said there would be discussions with staff, families, young people and businesses about potentially reforming term dates.

He said: "Reforming the school year could help to narrow the disruption caused by the long summer holiday on learners, narrow educational inequalities and to support learner and staff well-being."

It has been argued that the six-week summer holiday should be shorter because children, particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds, can lose ground with their learning.

Others have said changes should be made to help recover after the pandemic.

But Laura Doel from school leaders' union NAHT Cymru, said the Welsh government had failed to show evidence of why changes to the school day and term are needed.

She said while schools should support families, they are "not there as childcare providers".

"Evidence shows that keeping children in school for longer does not increase a child's capacity to learn; the focus should be on providing quality teaching and learning during schools' hours," she said.

She said concerns about putting extra pressure on schools had been ignored by the Welsh government.

"The fact that only 14 schools have signed up to take part when the government had wanted 20 speaks volumes. The profession is on its knees."

Advocates for reform said current patterns are based on 19th Century society when schools set their own patterns and going to school was voluntary.

Historian Martin Johnes said: "Schools had to fit with the requirements of local communities if they wanted children to attend and teachers to be paid.

"Children were needed to help with a variety of agricultural tasks such as sowing, harvests, and hay gathering.

"That created the norm of a long summer holiday."

In the early days, teachers set school days too.

Prof Johnes added: "With children having to walk to school, and often do chores afterwards, then a relatively short day made sense for parents, especially in the winter days when children might be walking home in the dark."

Now, local authorities set term times for schools, and there are often minor variations between different parts of Wales.

Traditionally, there has been a pattern of three terms per school year - but it could move to four or five terms.

The school governing body is mainly responsible for setting times for the school day, within Welsh government regulations.