Shorter school day planned for Fridays

Two schools in Lincolnshire will finish at lunchtime on Fridays following a consultation with parents.

Harbour Learning Trust said William Barcroft Junior School, in Cleethorpes, and Woodlands Academy, a primary school in Grimsby, had opted to make the change.

The trust said there would be "a comprehensive offer of and activities" in and out of school on Friday afternoons for children impacted by the changes.

It said the principals of William Barcroft and Woodlands Academy would write to parents with more details about the proposed changes and when they would be introduced.

Following the consultation, the trust said the principals had made the final decision on which approach to take for their schools.

Three options were put forward and the organisation said it had received over 500 responses.

Parents were asked for their views on plans to move the school start time forward 15 minutes with lessons starting at 08:30.

The second option was to reduce the length of the lunch break from an hour to 45 minutes, resulting in an earlier finish to the school day.

The third option was to end school on a Friday at 12:45 or 13:00 with after school activities for some children until 15:00.

The trust said option three would give teachers time for planning and preparation and staff with their workload and wellbeing.

They also said it would ensure that pupils are taught by a fully qualified teacher in every lesson during the week which would accelerate children's learning progress.

William Barcroft said they were confident the school would be able to accommodate at least 180 pupils on a Friday afternoon for extra-curricular activities.

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