Extra inset days in September

Monday 06 July 2020

Teachers working at States-run schools will have an additional two days of training in September after the Covid-19 pandemic interrupted plans for their professional development during this school year.

It's been decided that training will be offered over two extra inset days which will be added to the start of the autumn term for States schools in Guernsey and Alderney.

While the majority of students were due to return to their classrooms on Thursday 3 September, they will now all return to lessons on Monday 7 September.

School staff will be back to work on Tuesday 1 September as planned - but rather than having two inset days as originally planned, they will have four training days now.

Pictured: ESC President Matt Fallaize said regular training time is an essential part of a teacher’s professional development.

Those two additional inset days will be Thursday 3 and Friday 4 September, following the two originally planned inset days on the 1 and 2. 

Friday 4 September will also be used as an additional transitional day for some year groups within the secondary sector, before the majority of students begin their autumn term on Monday 7 September.

The Committee for Education, Sport and Culture said those two additional inset days will "give staff an opportunity to have training and development time that they missed in recent months due to Covid-19".

ESC added that as regular training time is an essential part of a teacher’s professional development and is critical to school improvement, the Committee took the decision to carry forward the two days to ensure staff did not miss out.

Pictured: Students at all schools in Guernsey and Alderney will be back on Monday 7 September after their summer break.

ESC President Deputy Matt Fallaize also praised school staff again for their crucial work during the lockdown which forced schools to close to the majority of students this spring.

"Staff in schools have been an integral part of the island’s response to Covid-19; firstly by keeping sites open for vulnerable students and the children of essential workers and then delivering a successful distance learning programme.

"One of the impacts of the pandemic was that staff missed two inset days, which are used for training and professional development. We know how important inset time is in providing our children and young people with a skilled and well-prepared workforce and so took what we considered to be a pragmatic decision to add the two inset days missed during lockdown on to the start of the autumn term. This will mean that most students will now begin their autumn term on Monday 7th September."

Guernsey's three private colleges will open for staff training days on Wednesday 3 September, with all pupils commencing lessons on Monday 7 September. 

Pictured top: Monday 7 September will see lessons resume in all classrooms in Guernsey and Alderney after the summer holidays.