Should School Summer BreAK Be Shorter?

Yes

I’M glad that others share my pain (“Today’s the day parents get fed up with holidays”, August 8).

My husband and I dread the six-week holiday as daily child care often proves to be an absolute nightmare. We stretch our individual annual leave from work to cover about three weeks then rely on family and kids’ clubs to pick up the rest of the time.

A reduced break is a sensible proposal and would benefit the children too. They would be much better prepared for the world of work where six weeks of holiday time is never ever taken in one go.

Sarah Davies,

York

No

I READ the piece about summer holidays with interest. While I can sympathise with the parents’ plight to an extent, at no point does the article mention the overworked and underpaid teachers who are responsible for the children for the rest of the year.

I work in a challenging primary school and while we turn around the fortunes of so many pupils, by the time July comes around we are in dire need of a break.

Six weeks is just enough to be able to recharge our batteries in time to deliver the same level of service in September.

Alex Smith, London