MPs held a Westminster Hall debate on Monday, considering a petition relating to the school week. The petition required schools to make Friday a part of the school weekend, arguing that children can have lots of stress at school due to exams and homework and with a 3 day weekend, children could have a longer time to relax. The petition received nearly 150,000 signatures.
Catherine McKinnell, MP for Newcastle North, introduced the debate. In response to the speed in which the petition attracted signatures, Catherine KcKinnell arranged for informal discussions with teachers, healthcare professionals and young people to help inform the debate. She said that one message that came across loud and clear was the state of children’s mental health post lockdown.
From April to September 2021, more than 337,000 under-18s were referred to child and adolescent mental health services. That is up by a staggering 81% from the same three months in 2019. That compares with only an 11% rise in referrals for adults aged 19 and above.
However, while Catherine McKinnell recognised the challenge, she questioned whether or not the four-day week would address the issues of stress and anxiety. She argued that the root causes of these challenges are bullying, peer pressure, harassment on social media, and problems keeping up with their school work.
Catherine feared that a shorter school week may increase pressure on young people. She said that schools already find it difficult to cover the curriculum. The teachers she had spoken to are spending a great deal of time helping children to learn social and emotional skills that the education system presumes are already there.
Finally, she expressed particular concern for the potential impact on the most disadvantaged, including those with special educational needs and children with extremely difficult home lives. For some, school is the only place that they get a decent meal, or gives them respite from a difficult situation at home. While she said that she could not support moving to a four-day school week, she said that we cannot ignore the petition as a cry for help.
Schools Minister Robin Walker MP responded to the petition on behalf of the Government. He set out the Government’s ‘long-term vision for pupils’ academic achievements’, the work DfE are doing to maximise time in school, the work to support children and young people recover from the pandemic, and finally on how spending more time in school can improve children and young people’s mental health and wellbeing.
Like Catherine McKinnell, Robin Walker opposed shortening the school week, arguing it would adversely impact children’s learning, as well as reducing opportunities to socialise and participate in enrichment activities.
