When do the summer holidays end in the North West? Term dates you need to know for the 2025/26 school year

• The summer holidays are now upon us
• The exact date they’ll end may vary based on where you live - or even which school your child goes to
• Councils generally have recommended term dates local schools follow
• Across the North West, teacher training days mean the new term will start a little later in some areas

Across the North West of England, school is now well and truly out for summer.

Schoolchildren now have six weeks to relax and recuperate, before the 2025/26 school year arrives and they have to do it all again. But while the holiday period may be a nice break for the kids, for parents they can require a little more work - from arranging childcare to back-to-school shopping done on time.

Of course, when exactly school starts back up again can look a little different depending on where you live. Although school term dates generally follow a similar pattern, each local authority is able to set its own recommended dates for schools in its area. Individual schools, especially academy and faith schools, may also have slightly different dates again.

There are also INSET days - or in-service training days for school staff - to take into consideration. These teacher-only days also often have recommended dates set by the council, and in the North West, mean that schools in some areas may start back up a little later than others.

Here are the days – by local authority – that the new school year will begin, as well as a general idea of what term and holiday dates will look like in the year to come:

When the summer holidays end in each North West council area

Cumbria

• Cumberland Council: New school year begins Wednesday, September 3
• Westmorland and Furness Council: New school year begins Wednesday, September 3

Cheshire

• Cheshire East Council: New school year begins Monday, September 1
• Cheshire West and Chester Council: New school year begins Monday, September 1
• Warrington Borough Council: New school year begins Wednesday, September 3
• Halton Borough Council: New school year begins Monday, September 1

Merseyside

• Knowsley Council: New school year begins Monday, September 1
• Liverpool City Council: New school year begins Monday, September 1
• St Helens Borough Council: New school year begins Wednesday, September 3
• Sefton Council: New school year begins Monday, September 1
• Wirral Council: New school year begins Monday, September 1

Greater Manchester

• Bolton Council: New school year begins Monday, September 1
• Bury Council: New school year begins Monday, September 1
• Manchester City Council: New school year begins Monday, September 1
• Oldham Council: New school year begins Monday, September 1
• Rochdale Borough Council: New school year begins Wednesday, September 3
• Salford City Council: New school year begins Monday, September 1
• Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council: New school year begins Monday, September 1
• Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council: New school year begins Monday, September 1
• Trafford Council: New school year begins Monday, September 1
• Wigan Council: New school year begins Tuesday, September 2

Lancashire

• Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council: New school year begins Monday, September 1
• Blackpool Council: Blackpool Council allows each local school to set its own term dates. It advises parents to get in touch with their child’s school to find out more – with details for contacting each of them available here.
• Lancashire County Council: New school year begins Monday, September 1

Term and holiday dates for the rest of the 2025/26 school year

While the exact term and holiday dates will vary slightly across local authority areas – and potentially even by school – here’s a general idea of what they will look like for the next academic year, based on the Manchester City Council’s calendar:

Autumn term 2025

• Monday, September 1: Autumn term begins
• Monday, October 27 - Friday, October 31: Half-term holiday
• Monday, November 3: School resumes
• Monday, December 22 2025 - Friday, January 2 2026: Christmas and New Year holidays

Spring term 2026

• Monday, January 5: Spring term begins
• Monday, February 16 to Friday, February 20: Half-term holiday
• Monday, February 23: School resumes
• Friday, April 3 to Friday, April 17: Easter holidays

Summer term 2026

• Monday, April 20: Summer term begins
• Monday, May 4: May Day bank holiday
• Monday, May 25 to Friday, May 29: Half-term holiday
• Monday, June 1: School resumes
• Wednesday, July 22: Summer holidays begin

If you’re a parent with a child preparing to make the leap to secondary school in September, check out this story for tips on how you can help prepare them for the transition over the coming weeks.