Find the correct dates for your nation, local council and school.
School breaks differ by nation, local authority and sometimes individual school. Use the official local source and then check the school's own calendar for inset days and other closures.
There is no single school-holiday calendar covering every pupil in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. In England and Wales, local authorities commonly publish term and holiday dates, while Scotland and Northern Ireland use their own systems. Academies, independent schools and individual schools may also choose dates that differ from the surrounding authority.
Families usually need the autumn half term, Christmas break, February half term, Easter break, late-spring half term and summer holiday. The exact pattern can vary, and schools may add inset or teacher-training days when pupils do not attend. Those one-day closures are easy to miss if you only copy the headline holiday periods.
Holiday dates help with annual leave, childcare, family visits, camps and travel. If children attend different schools, compare both calendars before booking anything. Families travelling between different parts of the UK should also check whether the local school breaks overlap, because accommodation demand and transport can peak at different times in different areas.
A local-authority calendar is a strong starting point, but the actual school may vary its dates. Check school newsletters or the school's published calendar for inset days, early finishes and unusual closures. If a paid booking depends on a specific date, use the school's own information rather than assuming the local authority's dates are identical.
Use the official finder to locate the relevant area, note the main breaks, then compare them with the student's school calendar. This page is meant to steer you to the correct source and explain the differences, not to invent one nationwide set of UK dates.