School Term Dates (Hansard, 11 May 2004)

§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Education and Skills (Baroness Ashton of Upholland)
My Lords, decisions on school term dates are made by local education authorities or school governing bodies, depending on the type of school. Procedures for consultation are not set out in legislation but we would expect there to be wide consultation with parents and the school workforce, and between the local education authority and schools.

§ Lord Hunt of Kings Heath
My Lords, I am grateful to my noble friend for that Answer. Does she agree that the change to a six-term year is fundamental for many parents? Will she ensure that, in encouraging LEAs to consult parents, they will consider having a ballot of all parents in their LEA area?

§ Baroness Ashton of Upholland
My Lords, it is an important change, but I am not sure whether I would go so far as to agree with my noble friend that it is fundamental. We would not want to be prescriptive. It is for local authorities to determine how they wish to consult. They might wish to do that, but we would not prescribe it.

§ Baroness Gardner of Parkes
My Lords, does this mean that one local education authority could introduce a six-term year in an area while in others a four-term year remained? Could that not create great confusion for parents, businesses or people planning to have jobs in one place and children at school in another?

§ Baroness Ashton of Upholland
My Lords, it could mean that there would be differences between local authorities. Twelve LEAs have moved to a modified version, if I might describe it as such, of the six-term year for 2004–05. The biggest change comes around the Easter break. In all cases the six-week summer holiday is retained, which is an issue that parents have raised.

§ Lord Taylor of Blackburn
My Lords, does my noble friend realise how important consultation is, especially in places such as Lancashire, where the wakes weeks happen throughout the county at different times? It is important that organisations such as trade unions are consulted also, because it makes a great difference to work in industry.

§ Baroness Ashton of Upholland
My Lords, again, that rests with local authorities. It is important that local authorities consult as appropriate. I am sure that local authorities in Lancashire would be mindful of the wakes weeks.

§ Lord Harrison
My Lords, does my noble friend agree that any such consultation should extend to the truancy problem of some parents taking children out of school for family holidays during term time? Will those consultations also extend to the tourism industry, which, I believe, would welcome a six-term year?

§ Baroness Ashton of Upholland
My Lords, I agree with my noble friend. The Local Government Association's independent commission on the school year included representation from the tourism industry.

§ Lord Northbourne
My Lords, do the Government have any mechanism for consulting parents? If so, what is it?

§ Baroness Ashton of Upholland
My Lords, we do not have a formal mechanism for consulting each parent. We keep in touch with parents through local authorities, through our work with schools, the National Confederation of Parent Teacher Associations, the National Association of Governors and Managers and the National Governors' Council.

§ Baroness Sharples
My Lords, the Minister said that there had been a modified change in one or two areas. Can she elaborate on that?

§ Baroness Ashton of Upholland
Indeed, my Lords. In 1999 the Local Government Association established an independent commission, which looked at a standardised six-term year, roughly comprising two seven-week terms in autumn and four terms of six weeks in spring and summer. The original proposals suggested that the school holidays would begin in early July and the autumn term in mid-August. The modification was to keep the summer holidays more or less as they are.

§ Baroness Sharp of Guildford
My Lords, why is there some variation in the pattern between local authorities? What advantages would there be of changing over to the new six-term year?

§ Baroness Ashton of Upholland
My Lords, there is no variation between the 12 LEAs that have gone forward with their proposals; they are all going for the modified version that I described, rather than the LGA's original proposal. The benefits are reckoned to come in the autumn term. Instead of having a long autumn term, schools would be able to split it up. There could also be a fixed spring holiday.

§ Lord Pilkington of Oxenford
My Lords, I realise that the Government are going further and further away from Europe, but why should Britain accept a scheme that no other country in Europe has? The long summer term is a characteristic of all European education. Global warming means that August would not be the ideal time. Have the Government given thought to what their neighbours do?

§ Baroness Ashton of Upholland
My Lords, the Government always look to their neighbours, but, in this context, responsibility for determining school terms lies with local authorities, who take into account a range of issues, particularly those that affect parents, schools and the school workforce.

§ The Earl of Listowel
My Lords, I welcome the helpful consultation with parents that the Minister's department undertook through the National Family and Parenting Institute, in preparation for the Children Bill. Will the Minister consider whether such consultation on this issue, commissioned by her department through the NFPI, would be useful to local authorities? Will she consider using that method, which worked so well with regard to the Children Bill, more widely, so that we can better understand the needs and wishes of parents?

§ Baroness Ashton of Upholland
My Lords. as the noble Earl knows, it is important to the department to have all the opportunities that we can to consult parents, through the Green Paper and the consultations on the Children Bill. On the specific question, it is for local authorities to determine how best to consult parents. Many have an opportunity to do so through the schools, and I would leave it in their hands.

§ Baroness Linklater of Butterstone
My Lords, does the consultation process take account of the needs of special schools? For children with special educational needs, continuity is all important.

§ Baroness Ashton of Upholland
My Lords, the noble Baroness makes an important point. The process is for all schools in an area. As the noble Baroness indicated, there are issues for children with special needs, not least in determining what additional support can be provided for those children beyond the school term.