Teaching time and timetabling in primary schools

It's up to you to decide how much teaching time to allocate each subject. See examples of how other primary schools have allocated teaching time across their timetables.

Last reviewed on 13 July 2022
School types: AllSchool phases: Nursery, PrimaryRef: 1241
Contents
  1. There's no set teaching hours for any phase
  2. Examples of timetables from primary schools

There's no set teaching hours for any phase

Maintained schools need enough time to cover the content set out in the National Curriculum.

Academies need enough time to allow for a broad and balanced curriculum, including for English, maths, science and religious education. That's explained here.

You also need to make sure that you are timetabling appropriate rest breaks for your teachers at some point in the day.

So long as you can meet those requirements, it's up to you to determine how much teaching time will be appropriate for your pupils. The DfE told us this.

When deciding this, consider:

  • The age and ability of your pupils
  • Your curriculum content
  • Your curriculum structure: how you plan to teach what is in your curriculum
  • Your school's learning philosophy and approach to teaching

The ASCL suggested this to us.

The 2022 schools white paper sets out a target for all mainstream maintained schools to offer a 32.5-hour week