Plans for shorter school holidays shelved, says Welsh government

There are about 470,000 pupils in Wales who would be affected by the changes if they were to go ahead, according to the latest figures.

Ministers argued that disadvantaged pupils would benefit most from a shorter summer break and more regular terms would be less tiring for pupils and staff.

They said many families struggled with childcare over the long summer holiday, and the changes would “align more effectively with how families live and work”.

But education unions said it was a distraction from other challenges schools face and could deter teachers from joining the profession.

The response to a public consultation – the biggest on record about education – generated more than 16,000 responses, the government said.

It said “a narrow majority” of those who responded were in favour of changing school holidays but there were “contradictory” findings – so more discussion was needed before anything was finalised.

Ms Neagle said a “pause” would allow reforms such as the new curriculum for Wales and an overhaul of additional learning needs to be rolled out before another major change.

“We need to continue listening to and engaging with schools, teachers, unions as well as children, young people and parents on how best we can implement any changes in the future,” the education secretary said.