South East · Kent County Council
Kent term dates 2026-27 and 2027-28
Kent County Council calendar for 2026-27 and 2027-28: October half term 26 to 30 October 2026, then Christmas holidays from 21 December 2026.
Kent schools go back on Tuesday 1 September 2026 and the 2026-27 school year ends on Wednesday 21 July 2027, according to the calendar published by Kent County Council. October half term is 26 to 30 October 2026. Christmas holidays run from 21 December 2026 to 1 January 2027, with pupils back on Monday 4 January 2027. February half term is 15 to 19 February 2027. The Easter holidays cover 26 March to 9 April 2027, taking in Good Friday and Easter Monday. May half term is 31 May to 4 June 2027. The summer holidays start on Thursday 22 July 2027. That leaves 195 weekdays in school after bank holidays, and each school then takes some of them as its own INSET days. The 2027-28 calendar is already published: school starts on Wednesday 1 September 2027 and the October break is 25 to 29 October 2027. Dates read on Kent County Council's own PDF calendar on 12 October 2026.
Dates read by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · How the dates are checked
What is particular about Kent
Kent numbers its year in six terms (Term 1 to Term 6) rather than autumn, spring and summer halves, and publishes the number of school days in each term.
The 2026-27 calendar totals 195 days across the six terms (39, 35, 30, 24, 34 and 33 days), described as a standard school year 'with additional INSET days': schools pick their own five non-contact days, so pupils attend 190.
Schools may ask teachers to make up the five non-contact days wholly or partly through additional hours before or after sessions, within the 1,265-hour annual limit, instead of closing for full INSET days.
In 2027-28 Easter falls late (Easter Sunday 16 April 2028): Term 4 runs to Friday 31 March 2028 and Term 5 starts on Tuesday 18 April 2028, the day after Easter Monday.
The 2026-27 PDF lists the May Day bank holiday inside Term 5 as '3/05/2026', a typing slip for Monday 3 May 2027.
Term dates for some schools may be different. Contact your child's school to check staff training days, individual half term breaks or if your child's school is private or independent.
The council page says term dates for some schools may be different and to contact the school to check staff training days and individual half term breaks.
Kent term dates 2026-27
| Period | Dates | Weekdays |
|---|---|---|
| Term 1 | Tuesday 1 September 2026 to Friday 23 October 2026 | 39 |
| October half term | 26 to 30 October 2026 | 5 |
| Term 2 | Monday 2 November 2026 to Friday 18 December 2026 | 35 |
| Christmas holidays | 21 December 2026 to 1 January 2027 | 10 |
| Term 3 | Monday 4 January 2027 to Friday 12 February 2027 | 30 |
| February half term | 15 to 19 February 2027 | 5 |
| Term 4 | Monday 22 February 2027 to Thursday 25 March 2027 | 24 |
| Easter holidays | 26 March to 9 April 2027 | 11 |
| Term 5 | Monday 12 April 2027 to Friday 28 May 2027 | 35 |
| May half term | 31 May to 4 June 2027 | 5 |
| Term 6 | Monday 7 June 2027 to Wednesday 21 July 2027 | 33 |
| Summer holidays | 22 July to 31 August 2027 | 29 |
Bank holidays inside term time, with no school: Early May bank holiday (3 May 2027).
Pupils attend 190 of the 195 days; each school specifies its own five non-contact days.
Kent term dates 2027-28
| Period | Dates | Weekdays |
|---|---|---|
| Term 1 | Wednesday 1 September 2027 to Friday 22 October 2027 | 38 |
| October half term | 25 to 29 October 2027 | 5 |
| Term 2 | Monday 1 November 2027 to Friday 17 December 2027 | 35 |
| Christmas holidays | 20 December 2027 to 3 January 2028 | 11 |
| Term 3 | Tuesday 4 January 2028 to Friday 11 February 2028 | 29 |
| February half term | 14 to 18 February 2028 | 5 |
| Term 4 | Monday 21 February 2028 to Friday 31 March 2028 | 30 |
| Easter holidays | 3 to 17 April 2028 | 11 |
| Term 5 | Tuesday 18 April 2028 to Friday 26 May 2028 | 29 |
| May half term | 29 May to 2 June 2028 | 5 |
| Term 6 | Monday 5 June 2028 to Friday 21 July 2028 | 35 |
| Summer holidays | 24 July to 31 August 2028 | 29 |
How Kent compares
Kent keeps the most common English dates for its october half term, february half term, easter holidays, may half term and summer holidays.
In the South East region, Brighton and Hove, Buckinghamshire, East Sussex, Isle of Wight, Medway, Milton Keynes, Oxfordshire, Portsmouth, Reading, Southampton, Surrey, West Sussex and Wokingham share the same Easter break.