Plan to make schools open for at least 32.5 hours a week delayed until next year

17 July 2023 , 13:10

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Ofsted inspectors will demand evidence of what plans are in place to lengthen the school week (Image: PA)

Plans to make all state schools run at least a 32.5-hour week have been delayed due to pressures on staff, the Government has said.

Schools in England had been told to make sure they meet the threshold from September - equivalent to 8.45am to 3.15pm each day.

But the plan, contained in last year's Schools White Paper, has now been delayed until next autumn. In guidance slipped out in the last week of term, the Department for Education (DfE) said heads will now have until September 2024 to meet the 32.5 hour threshold "in recognition of the pressures facing schools".

Ofsted inspectors will demand evidence of what plans are in place to lengthen the school week, the guidance said.

But unions branded the move "petty Government tinkering" and said the delay had been caused by ministers "dithering" over the plan.

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The 32.5 hour minimum week includes breaks, but the DfE said schools should "first consider prioritising lesson time above breaks" when increasing hours.

Schools have been told they need to provide a longer school day (Getty Images/Image Source)

Teachers are able to decide how the day is structured, so this could be extra time for English and Maths or sport and art activities.

The guidance states: "The minimum expected school week of 32.5 hours is the weekly average (as at July 2021) for mainstream schools and most schools already deliver a school week of at least this length.

"We therefore expect mainstream primary and secondary schools that are not currently delivering this minimum, to do so by September 2024 at the latest from within their existing budgets."

It comes as the Government published new funding rates, with around £6,000 for each pupil from next year through the National Funding Formula (NFF).

Unions said the Government was wasting schools' time - and some would be left with no option but to extend break times.

Geoff Barton, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL), said: "This is petty government tinkering masquerading as meaningful policy-making.

He added: "In many cases, the only thing these schools will realistically be able to do to meet the expectation is have slightly longer break times.

"However, in order to implement these changes they will have to consult parents, notify staff, and adjust transport arrangements. It is the government that is wasting time, not schools."

Mr Barton suggested the Government had been forced to defer the deadline "as a result of their own dithering".

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James Bowen, assistant general secretary at school leaders' union NAHT, said many schools already offered a 32.5 hour week - and those that don't may face "significant financial and logistical challenges".

"Schools may be forced to use already stretched budgets to extend the hours of lunchtime supervisors and other support staff, while others, especially in rural areas, may face a logistical nightmare when it comes to transport where buses are carefully timetabled around the end of the school day."

He said heads had been left in the dark until the last minute over whether they had to implement the plan next term.

Schools Minister, Nick Gibb said: "As part of our ambition to give every pupil the opportunity to succeed, we announced an expectation for all mainstream state-funded schools to deliver at least a 32.5-hour week by September 2023 in the Schools White Paper.

"Whilst the majority of schools are already delivering this commitment, schools will now have until September 2024 to meet this expectation."

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Lizzy Buchan