Students at a Lichfield school could finish 20 minutes earlier if plans are approved.
Governors of The Friary School will meet this evening (March 22) to debate the proposals which would see the timetabled day end at 3.05pm instead of 3.25pm.
A consultation into the plans, which would also see voluntary “enrichment” activities between 3.05pm and 4.30pm, has taken place in recent months.
In a statement about the proposals, headteacher Matt Allman said a shorter lunch break was one of the primary reasons for the changes.
“Any visitor will know that the seating in the dining area is not large enough for the number of students we have and, with our growing popularity meaning we will be taking in more students than ever, so the problem will only be exacerbated in future years,” he said.
“This situation is particularly problematic in the winter months as, though we open classrooms as lunch-rooms, these have to be closed before the end of lunch in order for them to be cleaned for afternoon lessons. This means that whatever the weather the vast majority of students have to go outside into the recreational areas which quickly become very crowded.
“There is also a lack of applications for midday supervisor posts. There are few people keen to take on a daily role for just one hour per day and with a growing roll this is only going to become more of a problem.
“The team we currently have in place will be able to supervise the students appropriately during a reduced lunch-time as they are largely busy eating. However, with the current long lunch-break, the growing numbers of students simply waiting around outside for afternoon lessons will potentially prove too great in numbers and suitable supervision will be difficult to maintain.”
Mr Allman said the move would bring the school in line with others in the area – and added that it would allow work to enhance extra-curricular sessions to continue.
“These improvements have seen a wider range of booster and support lessons, especially for the older students, as well as additional clubs including archery, fencing and cheerleading,” he said.
“An earlier start to these enrichment sessions will mean that students are less tired in the winter months and those students representing the numerous school teams will no longer have to leave lessons early to get to fixtures.
“We are also planning to extend the opening times of the school library to 4.30pm so another homework club and independent study time is readily available for students.”
A decision on the changes will be made at the meeting at 6pm this evening.