England bank holidays
England has eight bank holidays in a normal year, the same as Wales. Here is the full list of dates, the next one coming up and what to know about working, pay and substitute days.
England has 8 bank holidays in 2026, 8 bank holidays in 2027, 8 bank holidays in 2028.
| Date | Day | Bank holiday |
|---|---|---|
| Thursday | New Year's Day | |
| Friday | Good Friday | |
| Monday | Easter Monday | |
| Monday | Early May bank holiday | |
| Monday | Spring bank holiday | |
| Monday | Summer bank holiday | |
| Friday | Christmas DayNext | |
| Monday | Boxing DaySubstitute day |
| Date | Day | Bank holiday |
|---|---|---|
| Friday | New Year's Day | |
| Friday | Good Friday | |
| Monday | Easter Monday | |
| Monday | Early May bank holiday | |
| Monday | Spring bank holiday | |
| Monday | Summer bank holiday | |
| Monday | Christmas DaySubstitute day | |
| Tuesday | Boxing DaySubstitute day |
| Date | Day | Bank holiday |
|---|---|---|
| Monday | New Year's DaySubstitute day | |
| Friday | Good Friday | |
| Monday | Easter Monday | |
| Monday | Early May bank holiday | |
| Monday | Spring bank holiday | |
| Monday | Summer bank holiday | |
| Monday | Christmas Day | |
| Tuesday | Boxing Day |
Dates follow the official GOV.UK bank holiday list where published. Later years are calculated from the statutory rules and can change if a holiday is added or moved by royal proclamation.
Which months have a bank holiday this year, and which have none.
England and Wales share the shortest list in the UK: eight, against nine in Scotland and ten in Northern Ireland.
May always has two Monday bank holidays, on the first and last Mondays of the month.
St George's Day on 23 April is England's national day but has never been a bank holiday.
After the late-August bank holiday there is nothing until Christmas Day, almost four months later.
No. St George's Day, 23 April, is England's national day, but it is not and never has been a bank holiday.
Making it one would need action by the UK Government, either a royal proclamation or a change to the law. Petitions and private members' bills have asked for it for years without success. Of the four patron saints' days, only St Patrick's Day in Northern Ireland and St Andrew's Day in Scotland are bank holidays.
The year opens with New Year's Day, then waits for Easter. Good Friday and Easter Monday give a four-day weekend that can land any time between late March and late April.
May brings two Mondays off: the Early May bank holiday at the start of the month and the Spring bank holiday at the end. There is nothing in June or July. The Summer bank holiday follows on the last Monday in August, and the year closes with Christmas Day and Boxing Day.
Four of the eight are always Mondays and one is always a Friday, so most bank holidays in England create a long weekend without any help.
When New Year's Day, Christmas Day or Boxing Day falls on a Saturday or Sunday, the bank holiday moves to the next free weekday. The festival itself does not move: Christmas Day is still 25 December, but the day off is taken later.
If both Christmas Day and Boxing Day land on a weekend, the following Monday and Tuesday become bank holidays.
Wales uses exactly the same calendar. Scotland swaps Easter Monday for 2 January and St Andrew's Day, and takes its summer bank holiday at the start of August. Northern Ireland has every English bank holiday plus St Patrick's Day on 17 March and the Battle of the Boyne on 12 July.
Bank holidays are filled in green.
January
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
September
October
November
December
The next bank holiday in England is Christmas Day on Friday 25 December 2026.
England has 8 bank holidays in 2026. A normal year has eight.
In England: Christmas Day on 25 December, Boxing Day on 28 December.
No. The coming Monday, 19 October, is not a bank holiday in England.
No. England has no regular bank holiday in June or July. After the Spring bank holiday at the end of May, the next is the Summer bank holiday in late August.
No. St George's Day, 23 April, is not a bank holiday.
No government has created one. A new bank holiday in England needs a royal proclamation or legislation from the UK Government, and repeated petitions have not led to either.
The Summer bank holiday in England is on Monday 31 August 2026. It is always the last Monday in August.
Yes. England and Wales share one bank holiday calendar, so every date is identical.
No. Schools close on bank holidays, but term and holiday dates are set separately by councils and schools, and vary from one area to another.
No. There is no statutory right to time off or extra pay on a bank holiday in England. Your contract sets the rule, and an employer can count bank holidays as part of the 5.6 weeks of paid annual leave.