Information about holidays in the United Kingdom

The school year in the UK is generally split into three terms, each with a half-term holiday break and an end of term holiday, meaning there are six holidays per year.

Term 1 - Autumn Term

The first term, known as the Autumn term, starts at the beginning of September in England and Wales. In Scotland school normally begins towards the end of August. A one-week holiday, Autumn half-term, is taken in the last week or two of October (at some schools this can be a two week holiday). The school term then resumes until the Christmas holidays, which are taken from approximately the 20th December and are normally two weeks in length.

Term 2 - Spring Term

The second term, Spring term, begins in the New Year, usually around the 5th January. The half-term break for the Spring term is usually in mid-February, but can vary each year. In Scotland, there is normally no February half-term break.

The holiday at the end of the Spring Term is centred around the Easter Holiday. This means that the date of holidays varies each year depending when Easter takes place. In simple terms, the Easter holiday falls on the first full moon after the Spring Equinox, which means the break can vary from 22nd March to 25th April. The holidays taken by schools is normally two weeks, with the first week of holiday ending on Good Friday and the second week beginning with Easter Monday.

Term 3 - Summer Term

The summer term in the UK begins after Easter. The Summer half-term break is normally towards the end of May, for one week. In Scotland, there is no half-term break and the summer holiday begins at the end of June and runs for seven or eight weeks. In England and Wales, the summer holiday usually begins in the middle of July and last for six weeks