Sefton schools break up on Friday 18 December and return on 4 January. Half terms, INSET days, and the Southport schools whose October break is two weeks.
Sefton’s schools break up for Christmas on Friday 18 December 2026 and go back on Monday 4 January 2027, with October half term from 26 to 30 October. Those are the council’s model dates. Most Southport and Formby high schools follow them, but INSET days differ school by school, and two big Southport-area names take a two-week October break.
The quick answer
- October half term: Monday 26 to Friday 30 October 2026. KGV College and Merchant Taylors’ break from 19 October.
- Christmas: term ends Friday 18 December 2026, back Monday 4 January 2027. Merchant Taylors’ finishes at noon on Wednesday 16 December.
- February half term: 15 to 19 February 2027. Easter: 26 March to 9 April. Summer term ends 21 July 2027 on the council model.
Sefton Council’s model dates for 2026/27
These come from the council’s school terms and holidays page. The council sets a recommended model of 195 days and tells parents to check with their own school, because every school also sets its own INSET days.
| Term | Starts | Half term | Ends |
|---|---|---|---|
| Autumn 2026 | Tue 1 Sep 2026 | 26 to 30 Oct 2026 | Fri 18 Dec 2026 |
| Spring 2027 | Mon 4 Jan 2027 | 15 to 19 Feb 2027 | Thu 25 Mar 2027 |
| Summer 2027 | Mon 12 Apr 2027 | 31 May to 4 Jun 2027 | Wed 21 Jul 2027 |
The council counts 74 days in the autumn term, 54 in spring and 67 in summer.
Sefton school holidays 2027
Every school holiday in the 2027 calendar year on Sefton Council’s model, which spans the end of the 2026/27 school year and the start of 2027/28. The weekdays are worked out from the council’s term dates; your own school’s INSET days can add a day or two either side.
| Holiday | Pupils off | Back at school |
|---|---|---|
| Christmas 2026 | Sat 19 Dec 2026 to Sun 3 Jan 2027 | Mon 4 Jan 2027 |
| February half term | Mon 15 to Fri 19 Feb 2027 | Mon 22 Feb |
| Easter | Fri 26 Mar to Fri 9 Apr 2027 | Mon 12 Apr |
| Early May bank holiday | Mon 3 May 2027 | Tue 4 May |
| May half term | Mon 31 May to Fri 4 Jun 2027 | Mon 7 Jun |
| Summer holidays | Thu 22 Jul to Tue 31 Aug 2027 | Wed 1 Sep 2027 |
| October half term | Mon 25 to Fri 29 Oct 2027 | Mon 1 Nov |
| Christmas 2027 | From Sat 18 Dec 2027 | Tue 4 Jan 2028 |
Three dates in that list are easy to get wrong. Easter 2027 starts on Good Friday, 26 March, because the spring term ends on Thursday 25 March. The summer holidays start on a Thursday, 22 July, after the summer term ends on Wednesday 21 July. And Christmas 2027 runs to Tuesday 4 January 2028, because New Year’s Day 2028 falls on a Saturday and the bank holiday moves to Monday 3 January. Birkdale High and Formby High finish the summer term early, on Friday 16 July 2027, so pupils there start the summer holidays almost a week before the council model.
Southport and Formby schools: where they differ
We checked each school’s own published calendar on 25 September 2026. The table shows the dates that matter for childcare: when pupils are out of school, not when staff are.
| School | October half term | Last day before Christmas | INSET days (pupils off) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Birkdale High, Southport | 26 to 30 Oct | Fri 18 Dec | 1 Sep, 27 Nov, 19 to 21 Jul |
| Meols Cop High, Southport | 26 to 30 Oct | Fri 18 Dec | 1 and 2 Sep, 4 Dec, 4 Jan, 22 Feb, 25 and 28 Jun |
| Stanley High, Southport | 26 to 30 Oct | Fri 18 Dec (12 noon) | 1 and 2 Sep, 4 Dec, 29 Jan, 22 Feb |
| Formby High | 26 to 30 Oct | Fri 18 Dec | 1 Sep, 4 Dec (three July days worked as twilights) |
| KGV College, Southport | 19 to 30 Oct | Fri 18 Dec | Not listed on the college page |
| Merchant Taylors', Crosby (independent) | 19 to 30 Oct | Wed 16 Dec (noon) | Not listed on the school page |
Sources: Birkdale High, Meols Cop High, Stanley High, Formby High (PDF), KGV College and Merchant Taylors’.
Three things stand out.
Friday 4 December is a common INSET day. Meols Cop, Stanley High and Formby High all close to pupils that day, which makes a three-day weekend two weeks before Christmas. Birkdale High’s is a week earlier, on Friday 27 November.
Meols Cop pupils go back a day after the rest. Monday 4 January 2027 is an INSET day there, so pupils return on Tuesday 5 January. Stanley High pupils do the same after February half term, returning on Tuesday 23 February.
The two-week October break is a sixth-form and independent thing. KGV Sixth Form College in Southport breaks from Monday 19 to Friday 30 October. Merchant Taylors’ in Crosby does the same. A family with one child at a Sefton high school and one at KGV will have them off together only in the second week.
Christmas and the spring term, in detail
- KGV College: autumn term runs to Friday 18 December; spring term Monday 4 January to Thursday 25 March 2027; summer term Monday 12 April to Thursday 24 June 2027.
- Merchant Taylors’: autumn term ends at noon on Wednesday 16 December; spring term starts Thursday 7 January 2027 and ends at noon on Wednesday 24 March; summer term runs from Thursday 15 April to noon on Tuesday 6 July 2027.
- Stanley High: both the Christmas and Easter breaks start at 12 noon on the last day, Friday 18 December and Thursday 25 March.
- Birkdale High and Formby High both end the summer term on Friday 16 July 2027, five days before the council model, with the remaining days as staff training.
Monday 3 May 2027 is the early May bank holiday, and schools are closed.
Looking further ahead: 2027/28
Sefton has already published its model for the following two years. For 2027/28 the autumn term starts on 1 September 2027, October half term is 25 to 29 October 2027 and the Christmas break starts after Friday 17 December 2027. Spring term runs from 4 January to 7 April 2028, with half term 21 to 25 February; summer term runs from 24 April to 20 July 2028, with half term 29 May to 2 June (Sefton Council).
Sefton has also set the model for 2028/29: autumn term from 1 September 2028 with half term 23 to 27 October and a Christmas finish on Wednesday 20 December; spring term 3 January to 29 March 2029, half term 12 to 16 February; summer term 16 April to 20 July 2029, half term 28 May to 1 June.
Frequently asked questions
When are the Sefton school holidays in 2027?
On the council model: February half term 15 to 19 February, Easter 26 March to 9 April, May half term 31 May to 4 June, summer from 22 July to 31 August, and October half term 25 to 29 October 2027.
When do Sefton schools break up for summer 2027?
The council model ends the summer term on Wednesday 21 July 2027. Some schools finish earlier: Birkdale High and Formby High both close to pupils after Friday 16 July.
When do Sefton schools go back after Christmas?
Monday 4 January 2027. At Meols Cop High that day is an INSET day, so pupils return on Tuesday 5 January.
What to do with the dates
For the week itself, our Southport October half term page lists what is on locally from 24 October to 1 November, and the Books Alive festival runs in the same week. For the Christmas break, see the pantomime and Santa’s grotto pages.
Still to be confirmed
- Primary school INSET days. Each primary sets its own; check the school’s website or newsletter.
- Christ the King, Greenbank High and Range High had not put 2026/27 dates on a page we could read on 25 September. We will add them when we can check them.
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