Oxford's state schools take October half term from 26 to 30 October and Christmas from 21 December. Cherwell, Cheney, Spires, MCS and more compared.
Oxfordshire’s state schools break for October half term on Friday 23 October and go back on Monday 2 November 2026. Christmas runs from Monday 21 December to Friday 1 January, and the spring term starts on Monday 4 January 2027. Those are the county council’s dates and most Oxford secondaries follow the holidays exactly. What differs is the INSET days, which every school sets for itself, and a handful of Oxford schools that break a week or more earlier.
The quick answer
- October half term: Monday 26 to Friday 30 October 2026 for county schools, Cherwell, Cheney and Matthew Arnold.
- Christmas: last day Friday 18 December, back Monday 4 January 2027, although Cheney finishes on Thursday 17 December and several schools use 4 or 5 January as INSET days.
- Oxford Spires Academy takes two weeks at October, 19 to 30 October, and Oxford High School GDST breaks up for Christmas on Friday 11 December.
Oxfordshire County Council term dates 2026/27
These are the dates the county sets for its community and voluntary controlled schools, and the pattern most Oxford academies copy (Oxfordshire County Council, school term dates and holidays; 2026/27 calendar PDF).
| Term or holiday | Dates |
|---|---|
| INSET day (county-wide) | Tuesday 1 September 2026 |
| Autumn term | Wednesday 2 September to Friday 23 October |
| October half term | Monday 26 to Friday 30 October |
| Autumn term | Monday 2 November to Friday 18 December |
| Christmas holiday | Monday 21 December to Thursday 31 December |
| Spring term | Monday 4 January to Friday 12 February 2027 |
| February half term | Monday 15 to Friday 19 February |
| Spring term | Monday 22 February to Thursday 25 March |
| Easter holiday | Tuesday 30 March to Friday 9 April |
| Summer term | Monday 12 April to Friday 28 May |
| May half term | Tuesday 1 to Friday 4 June |
| Summer term | Monday 7 June to Wednesday 21 July 2027 |
The county’s table leaves out the bank holidays, which is why Christmas appears to end on 31 December and the Easter and May breaks appear to start on a Tuesday. Friday 1 January, Good Friday (26 March), Easter Monday (29 March) and the spring bank holiday (31 May) are closed days anyway.
The council names only one INSET day, 1 September 2026, as county-wide. For the rest its advice is to check with your school, “as schools have different INSET days”. That is where the Oxford differences come from.
How Oxford’s schools differ
The big city secondaries and two of the best-known independents publish their own 2026/27 calendars. Every date below is from the school’s own page.
| School | Last day before October half term | Back after half term | Last day before Christmas | Back in January | Last day in July |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| County pattern | Fri 23 Oct | Mon 2 Nov | Fri 18 Dec | Mon 4 Jan | Wed 21 Jul |
| The Cherwell School | Fri 23 Oct | Mon 2 Nov | Fri 18 Dec (lunchtime) | Wed 6 Jan | Wed 21 Jul |
| Cheney School | Fri 23 Oct (1.30pm) | Tue 3 Nov | Thu 17 Dec | Tue 5 Jan | Fri 23 Jul |
| Matthew Arnold School | Thu 22 Oct | Mon 2 Nov | Fri 18 Dec | Mon 4 Jan | Wed 21 Jul |
| Oxford Spires Academy | Fri 16 Oct | Mon 2 Nov | Fri 18 Dec (12.30pm) | Tue 5 Jan | Wed 21 Jul (12.30pm) |
| Oxford High School GDST | Tue 20 Oct | Mon 2 Nov | Fri 11 Dec | Tue 5 Jan | Wed 14 Jul |
| Magdalen College School | Fri 16 Oct | Mon 2 Nov | Wed 16 Dec | Wed 6 Jan | Sat 10 Jul |
The Cherwell School, North Oxford
Cherwell follows the county’s holidays but opens the year and the spring term with two INSET days each: 1 and 2 September, and Monday 4 and Tuesday 5 January 2027, so pupils go back on Wednesday 6 January. It also has an INSET day on Monday 28 June 2027, and closes early on the last day of each term (The Cherwell School, term dates).
Cheney School, Headington
Cheney sets the most INSET days of any school here: 1 and 2 September, Monday 2 November (so pupils return on Tuesday 3 November), Monday 4 January, Monday 22 February and Friday 2 July 2027. It also closes for a whole-school wellbeing day on Friday 4 December 2026. It finishes at 1.30pm on the last Friday before each half term, and its summer term runs two days longer than the county’s, to Friday 23 July (Cheney School, term dates).
Matthew Arnold School, Cumnor Hill
Matthew Arnold makes Friday 23 October an INSET day, so its pupils’ last day before half term is Thursday 22 October. Its other INSET days are 1, 2 and 3 September, Friday 2 October, Monday 30 November 2026 and Monday 22 February 2027 (Matthew Arnold School, term dates).
Oxford Spires Academy, East Oxford
Spires is the one state secondary in the city with a two-week October break, from 19 to 30 October. Its last day of the first half term is Friday 16 October. Monday 4 January 2027 is an INSET day, so pupils return on Tuesday 5 January (Oxford Spires Academy, school day and term dates).
Oxford High School GDST and Magdalen College School
The independents run on their own calendars. Oxford High’s half term is Wednesday 21 to Friday 30 October, and its autumn term ends on Friday 11 December, a full week before the state schools (Oxford High School GDST, term dates). Magdalen College School’s Michaelmas half term runs from Saturday 17 October to Sunday 1 November, and Michaelmas term ends on Wednesday 16 December. Its Trinity term starts a week after the state schools, on Monday 19 April, and the year closes with Commemoration Day on Saturday 10 July (Magdalen College School, term dates).
Families with children at two schools
The awkward weeks in 2026/27 are these:
- 12 to 16 October: Spires, Oxford High and Magdalen College School pupils are in school; the following week Spires and MCS are off while county-pattern schools are still teaching.
- 14 to 18 December: Oxford High has already broken up; Cheney finishes on Thursday 17 December, everyone else on the Friday.
- 4 and 5 January: Matthew Arnold is back on the Monday, Cheney, Spires and Oxford High on the Tuesday, Cherwell and MCS on the Wednesday.
The October half term week and Christmas in Oxford
What is actually on in the city in the October half term week is on our Oxford October half term page. For getting around over Christmas and New Year, see Oxford Christmas trains and travel, and for the city’s bin days, only Friday rounds move at Christmas.
2027/28 dates are already out
The county has published next year too: October half term is 25 to 29 October 2027, the autumn term ends on Tuesday 21 December 2027, the spring term starts on Wednesday 5 January 2028, and the summer term ends on Friday 21 July 2028 (Oxfordshire County Council, 2027/28 calendar PDF). Schools set their own INSET days for that year over the coming months.
What is still to be confirmed
Nothing for 2026/27 at the schools above: every date here is published. Schools do occasionally add a closure day during the year (Cheney’s 4 December wellbeing day is an example), so check your own school’s calendar before booking a holiday. We will recheck these pages in December before the spring term.
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