Croydon term dates 2026/27: October half term is 26 to 30 October and Christmas runs 21 December to 1 January. Plus Trinity, Croydon High and academy dates.
Croydon’s council schools break for October half term from Monday 26 to Friday 30 October 2026, and for Christmas from Monday 21 December 2026 to Friday 1 January 2027, going back on Monday 4 January. Those are the dates Croydon Council sets for its community schools. Academies, free schools, church schools and independents set their own, and several of the borough’s best-known schools break earlier and for longer. Below are the council’s dates for the whole year, then the schools that differ.
The quick answer
- October half term: Monday 26 to Friday 30 October 2026.
- Christmas holiday: Monday 21 December 2026 to Friday 1 January 2027. Autumn term ends on Friday 18 December; spring term starts on Monday 4 January.
- February half term: 15 to 19 February 2027. Easter: 26 March to 9 April 2027. The school year ends on Thursday 22 July 2027.
Croydon Council term dates 2026/27
These are from the council’s term dates PDF, linked from its school term and holiday dates page. They apply to community nursery, primary, secondary and special schools.
| Term or holiday | Dates |
|---|---|
| Autumn 1 | Wednesday 2 September to Friday 23 October 2026 |
| October half term | Monday 26 to Friday 30 October 2026 |
| Autumn 2 | Monday 2 November to Friday 18 December 2026 |
| Christmas holiday | Monday 21 December 2026 to Friday 1 January 2027 |
| Spring 1 | Monday 4 January to Friday 12 February 2027 |
| February half term | Monday 15 to Friday 19 February 2027 |
| Spring 2 | Monday 22 February to Thursday 25 March 2027 |
| Easter holiday | Friday 26 March to Friday 9 April 2027 |
| Summer 1 | Monday 12 April to Friday 28 May 2027 (closed Monday 3 May, bank holiday) |
| May half term | Monday 31 May to Friday 4 June 2027 |
| Summer 2 | Monday 7 June to Thursday 22 July 2027 |
| Summer holiday | From Friday 23 July 2027 |
A small warning about the council’s web page: it gives the end of the Christmas holiday as “Friday 2 January”, but 2 January 2027 is a Saturday. The PDF has it right as Friday 1 January 2027. The web page also still describes the table as the year “beginning in September 2025”. Go by the PDF.
INSET days. The council’s table allows 195 school days, of which pupils attend 190. The other five are training (INSET) days, and each school chooses its own. The council’s advice is to check with your school.
Schools that set their own dates
Academies and church schools often keep to the council pattern with small changes. The independent schools differ the most. These are from each school’s own published calendar.
| School | October half term | Last day before Christmas | Back in January |
|---|---|---|---|
| Council community schools | Mon 26 to Fri 30 Oct | Fri 18 Dec | Mon 4 Jan |
| John Whitgift Academy | Pupils off from Thu 22 Oct (two INSET days), back Mon 2 Nov | Thu 17 Dec (Fri 18 Dec is INSET) | Mon 4 Jan |
| Trinity School | Sat 17 Oct to Sun 1 Nov (two weeks) | Thu 10 Dec, 12.30pm | Wed 6 Jan (INSET 4 and 5 Jan) |
| Croydon High School | From Fri 16 Oct, 3.45pm, to Sun 1 Nov (two weeks) | Fri 11 Dec | Wed 6 Jan (INSET 4 and 5 Jan) |
The gap matters for families with children at two schools. A Trinity or Croydon High pupil starts the Christmas holiday a week or more before a sibling at a council primary, and has a fortnight off in October against the council’s one week.
John Whitgift Academy also starts later in September (Thursday 3 September) and ends the year on Wednesday 21 July 2027. Its other training days are 1 and 2 September.
Trinity School breaks for summer on Friday 2 July 2027, nearly three weeks before council schools, and Croydon High on Friday 9 July 2027, nearly two weeks before.
If your child’s school is not listed, its own website is the only reliable source. The council says that voluntary aided schools in particular may differ.
October half term in Croydon
Half term for council schools is 26 to 30 October. Most organisers publish their half term programmes in October, and we will add a fuller list then. Confirmed so far from the organisers’ own listings:
- Dinosaur Adventure Live: Danger on T-Rex Mountain, Fairfield Ashcroft Theatre, Monday 26 October at 2pm and 4.30pm. About an hour long, tickets £19.75 (Fairfield Halls).
- Kids play free at PLAYBOX, Croydon, 24 to 30 October: up to two children aged 15 or under play free with each paying adult (Croydon BID).
- Museum of Croydon, in the Clocktower, is free and open Wednesday to Saturday. Its current exhibition, Shaping Croydon: Architecture and Ambition, opened on 10 September (Museum of Croydon).
For year-round ideas, see our things to do in Croydon page.
Looking further ahead: 2027/28
The council has already published its 2027/28 dates. The year starts on Wednesday 1 September 2027; October half term is 25 to 29 October 2027; and the Christmas holiday runs from Monday 20 December 2027 to Monday 3 January 2028, with pupils back on Tuesday 4 January.
Still to be confirmed
- Half term activities for 26 to 30 October: most programmes appear in the first half of October. We will update this page on 9 October.
- Your school’s INSET days, which each school sets itself.
Over Christmas, bins and tips change too: see Croydon Christmas bin collections and Christmas trains and travel. Dropping off at school by car? Our roadworks and travel page lists the closures.
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