PARENTS and teachers across East Lancashire will face "real problems" in the future thanks to conflicting holiday patterns in schools, unions claim.

Schools in Blackburn and Darwen will not be changing their holiday pattern to fit in with the rest of Lancashire, it has been announced.

Blackburn with Darwen Council's decision will cause difficulties for parents and teachers in Burnley, Pendle, Hyndburn, Rossendale, and Ribble Valley, according to the National Union of Teachers (NUT) In September, Lancashire County Council adopted a standard six-term school year for its 11 districts.

But Blackburn with Darwen Council - which is responsible for setting the holiday pattern for community and controlled schools - carried out its own consultation asking parents, teachers, young people and employers whether they wanted to adopt the new pattern, or keep its existing three-term year.

More than 1,000 people responded and the results of the consultation, which ended on December 31, showed that while there was no over-riding collective view, "there is no overwhelming desire to change the way in which the current holiday pattern is set".

But the NUT says that not having the same pattern as the rest of Lancashire - which now comprises two seven-week terms and four six-week terms - will cause difficulties for many parents and teachers, especially during the Easter holidays.

Blackburn's current system means that the two-week spring break moves to coincide with Easter celebrations, making lesson planning difficult.

Under the six-term scheme, the two-week break will always be taken in early April regardless of when Easter falls, and schools will also take the Good Friday and Easter Monday bank holidays. The NUT said: "There are strong educational reasons for eliminating the vagaries of lengths of terms and half terms, caused by the movement of Easter. But we also support the change for practical reasons as many of our members have partners and children who teach or attend schools in neighbouring authorities.

"It creates real problems for such families when school holiday patterns between LEAs do not coincide."

Coun David Harling, the council's executive member for resources, highlighted a further complication - voluntary aided schools in the borough can choose to follow either pattern.

Coun Harling's two children attend the voluntary aided St Wilfrid's CE High School and Technology College, which has decided to follow to Lancashire pattern, but his wife is a teacher at The Redeemer CEP Primary School, under Blackburn with Darwen's authority.

He said: "This will obviously cause difficulties for us, but we're not alone - there are plenty of parents who have children in both sectors that are affected, and this will cause problems for them.

"If they have got children going to primary school, and also at secondary, parents have a dilemma at Easter - do they take time off with their primary or secondary school children?"

Maureen Bateson, Blackburn with Darwen's executive member for children's services, said: "The council has always been clear that to move from the traditional way that the dates are set would need a thorough consultation with a clear mandate for change.

"The responses showed that whilst there was a desire for some change there was no overall desire to move radically from the way that the dates are currently set."