So, as the title suggests I wondered what others did on days like today?

I have always worked bank holidays as I think that Monday students in particular get a very raw deal otherwise in terms of lessons taken throughout the year.

However, over the last couple of weeks I've wondered whether it's really worth the hassle? I have two not coming this evening and another that hasn't confirmed one way or the other.

Added to that, I have a husband who's a teacher (secondary rather than private tuition) and two small children and now I feel that I'm missing out on time with them as I'm starting to think about what I'm going to be teaching this evening.

So, what's your policy?

Cheers

Catherine x

Before OH retired, I used to like to take the time off too but, as you say, some students do get a raw deal (but usually Thursday pupils here). I have a blanket policy now that I work through occasional holidays / bank holidays as (a) I usually forget they are coming up and so don't think to cancel; (b) there are some odd holidays here, such as communion holidays on a Thursday from which the schools seem to think Friday is needed as a holiday too; and © it does interrupt the flow of things. There are inevitably some people who ring to ask if there's a lesson, but most seem to turn up as normal.

I don't think it's worth the hassle. I agree it's a bit rough on Monday people - one reason I'm not in favour of more bank holidays! but in general I find that families don't want to be tied down. Or they say - 'I'll see what we're doing and let you know' ..... and you're left wondering.

I made it clear on my Monday invoices this time that the bank holiday was not listed, and was not being charged for. If any of my current Monday lot very much needed to have a lesson ( eg exam candidate) I would probably offer a morning lesson, and so leave the rest of the day free.

What I don't want is to be left with a mini-teaching session later in the day - unless it absolutely can't be avoided.

I didn't teach on Mondays at all until last term but now I have 3 pupils who usually come on a Monday. I don't teach on the bank holiday and in practice, it doesn't work to reschedule to another day in the same week - that applies both to me and to them. My husband would have to 'disappear' during the teaching time or sit in the same downstairs space whilst I teach, allbeit out of the way visually - not great for either of us or for the pupil.

For me, I think this May bank holiday is the only one which affects me as I don't teach during school holidays or half terms. Easter/Christmas/New Year/August generally always fall outside my teaching time and pupil availability.

I don't have children at home and we don't tend to go out on a Bank Holiday.
I also only teach a few hours a week in total so I'm available if students want lessons.
I agree about Monday students potentially having to miss more lessons as I'm someone who doesn't like missing lessons unless I'm actually not home.
I can often offer Tuesday in a Bank holiday week as that's a day I don't usually teach but sometimes I have other things planned as I do this week.
Financially it's no longer an issue as I charge for a 40 week year and this allows sufficient slack in the calendar for this.

Our bank holiday has been taken over by music lessons today - it's great! Son gets a longer one because it's during the day, and I'm having my usual lesson.

I sent my Monday people a mail at the end of last week and asked them to let me know if they were likely to be coming, as I'll be at home anyway. Two said yes, two said no.

We probably wouldn't have been going out or away (otherwiae I'd just have cancelled) so it's quite a imple matter here.

This year, I'm giving lessons on this BH Monday. Other BHs fall within school holidays when I don't teach normally so don't give me a problem.

I had an extra week's holiday after Easter which I really felt I needed - our schools were all a bit scattered as to when they went back after Easter - so I sent an email, and talked to my Monday pupils and only one is not coming.

This BH Monday is a particular nuisance because it interrupts the flow for Monday pupils. At school (where I have to give 30 lessons a year) I always try to go in on a day when I'm not teaching just at the start of term and give all the Monday pupils a catch up lesson which I announce is "instead of the BH". I haven't had any complaints so far.

As most of my pupils are school-based, I have little choice but to take a day off!

In the early days of teaching, I was naive enough to think that most were so keen on their lessons they wouldn't want to miss them for anything, let alone a bank holiday! Of course the reality, not disimilar to school holidays, was that they were all enthusiastic and faithfully promised to come, but in reality hard any did. I've been out this morning and quite rightly, there are a lot of families out and about enjoying the day off!

I've solved it to a certain extent by not teaching on Mondays at all. There are so many bank holidays there just isn't the space and time elsewhere to do all the rearranging that would be required.

I never work on bank holidays. My view is that work is what you do between holidays . Also if everyone treated bank holidays as "normal working days" then eventually the government will cancel all of them and we will not have any holidays at all. I went for a wander around my area this morning and apart from the banks, post offices and schools being closed there was absolutely no indication that today is a holiday. Even the local supermarkets were open (although there were notices on the doors that they are closing at 4pm). Today is a holiday and there won't be another one until 28th May so ENJOY IT !!!!!

There isn't one on 28 May! It's been moved to June for the Queen's jubilee.
Normally I don't teach on bank holiday Mondays but I do offer to move people to another day. Today is an exception because I have a holiday coming up and they will miss two other Mondays. Only one student isn't coming or rearranging today.

None of my students want lessons on Bank Holidays which is handy as I don't really want to teach on this day as I'd probably need to pay for childcare when I'm already paying for a day at nursery that we don't get refunded or a day in lieu when it's a Bank Holiday!

This is the only Bank Holiday that doesn't fall in school holidays so it's the only one that affects me.

OH works pretty much seven-day weeks so it's a rare opportunity to go out together. He was going to be away so I did actually schedule my usual Monday evening group for this morning - but we all decided to chicken out of it and have a DAY OFF instead .

I believe the UK has fewer Bank Holidays than almost any other country. Personally I'm in favour of a few more (and please don't put them in the school holidays!).

I think I'm getting old but I got knocked out by a non-stop eight days recently and I am coming to the conclusion that I need and want more time off...some more 'me time'...

All of mine are coming today. They are all working towards exams and our summer concert, so I didn't really want them to miss a week.
I reminded them all last week that today was a bank holiday but they all said they would still come, which suits me fine as I wouldn't really choose to go out on a bank holiday, especially a cold one like today!

Really? I didn't know that. Are you sure? 28th May is printed in my diary as a bank holiday. I thought that the June ones were supposed to be "extra" holidays for the Queen's Jubilee. In what way are they "extra" if the usual end of May holiday is cancelled??

The Tuesday is extra, the Monday is moved from the previous week. Are you sure the one in your diary isn't for somewhere else in the world. Were you also unaware that half term is the beginning of June rather than the end of May this year?

That's when it gets REALLY disruptive..... 2 bank holiday Mondays in May!!!
There are enough holiday times without having to miss lessons on a regular basis for those annoying Mondays.
Luckily my teachers do teach on some of them.

Yes, it's the May 28th one which has moved to the following Monday which is in half term. The Tuesday is the extra day and has been haphazardly put all over the place by local schools around here! My husband's school had Friday just gone, my son has the Friday before half term, my daughter's pre-school seems to be ignoring it totally and some of the private schools here had it last October! The whole thing's a nightmare!

Lots of interesting points raised above - I tend to start straight in after New Year and have usually had Monday students in before they go back to school if the bank holidays are at weekends then, so for me it affects two days. Sometimes this will affect the start of the academic year in September as well depending on how many inset days the local schools have.

Will have to crunch some numbers and see how much it would cost as I can't rearrange to anywhere else in the week as my week is full to bursting with teaching, Tootlepops (my baby music group), Jack's Rake (my band) and my own children's activities!

xx

Half term here is 28th May to 1st June. I was chatting to a colleague last week and saying it wasn't very fair because in effect they will be losing one day as the late May bank holiday falls during that week and they would be on holiday anyway so technically they do not get a bank holiday. A little crafty, I think.

The schools here are definitely on half term the week beginning the 4th June - it's a week later than usual so that the two bank holidays (the one from the 28th May and the extra one) can be included without children missing more school days.

Really? So therefore they don't actually get the "extra" bank holidays because they would be on holiday anyway. And I presume they would be going back to school the following Monday, not Wednesday to allow for the 2 extra days? Doesn't seem very fair to me. Methinks a letter to the Queen is in order.

It's usual here at least for this half term holiday to be the spring bank holiday week.
Once upon a time it would be Whit week that was the holiday but now that's only if it happens to coincide. This year it would have done if it hadn't been moved. There's only one Church in my town now that is sticking to walking on whit Friday instead of the Sunday though in some other local towns they still have the Friday and this ties in with the Whit Friday Band contests.
When the holiday isn't the Whit week some children will have time off school either to walk with their Church or to play with their band or both.

Back to the OP - all of my Monday teaching is in school so I take the day off! HUZZAH! Alpha Male Jazz Cat teaches at a posh tottie Public School and has to work as usual. Tee Hee. Mind you, they finish half way through June for the summer....

Shoving the half term back a week has meant most of us working a 7-week half which is not good for my chi! Still, it makes it a shorter hop t'other side (thinks longingly of plane and warm destination...)

Day-Off-Bag x

Excellent idea.

I don't generally work on Bank Holidays, but our local Festival is coming up, so I have had a 'drop-in' rehearsal session this afternoon. It worked well with a steady flow of students through the afternoon, providing an audience for each other. Two thirds of those who are performing at the Festival came, so it was worthwhile.

Re half terms: Sonny Jim is right miffed. His birthday always falls during the regular half term (pat on back to me for producing him with such good timing ). Only once in his school career has he had to have a birthday on a school day, and now, because of the Queen's bl**ming jubilee, his 18th birthday is going to be in school time too. Not a happy boy.

I don't know what part of South West London you live or teach in, but Hammersmith & Fulham, Kensington & Chelsea, Lambeth, Merton, Southwark and Wandsworth have all scheduled the half-term holiday for the first week of June...


What's really annoying is when schools keep scheduling Insed days on Mondays and Fridays. Pretty daft, in my opinion, and it must surely affect other weekly activities in addition to music lessons.

My son's school last year decided they had missed too many Mondays and had a Friday as a Monday. They just all did their Monday lessons on that Friday.

Ditto Croydon, Sutton, Richmond, Hounslow, Kingston, Ealing...

...and Bromley...

So which of those boroughs only holds ABRSM exams on a Saturday?

In the last two decades I can't think of ever being given a weekday in London. There was once but that was a Special Visit organised in North London. Sometimes I do think Trinity exams would be less hassle for the parents as there is the option to choose a Sunday.