Staggered school breaks
A proposal to stagger school holidays to support the tourism industry was rejected by Education Minister Chris Hipkins as he believed it would disrupt students’ learning.
A briefing paper to incoming Tourism Minister Stuart Nash, released publicly this week, revealed the suggestion and subsequent rejection.
With the absence of international tourists after Covid-19 closed borders, many in the tourism industry believed staggered holidays would stimulate domestic tourism and even out demand.
Hipkins said there were merits in the proposal, but changes to the current school holiday timetable would require wide consultation across New
Zealand.
The priority in 2020 and 2021 was to minimise disruption to students’ learning, he said.
Some changes had been made due to Covid19, including changing the end date of term one, and schools already had some flexibility for setting their holiday dates.
‘‘Terms and holidays are currently set, based on principles agreed by the sector, with notice years in advance,’’ he said.
The idea was promoted in May by economist Cameron Bagrie, who suggested dividing the country into two or three school regions, each with a different holiday schedule, would help smooth tourism’s peaks and troughs.
Rolling start dates are common in parts of Europe and in Australia, where school holidays vary by state.
Their introduction in New Zealand could benefit families as