1. Policy statement
The hours of instruction provided to students comply with the requirements of legislation and industrial agreements.
2. Policy rules
Principals will:
- configure the school day to ensure the minimum hours of instruction are responsive to student needs and the context of the school community
- communicate relevant and accurate information about school hours to the school community
- manage the configuration of the school day in accordance with the Configuration of the School Day in Public Schools procedures.
Guidance
The minimum hours of instruction for students, exclusive of recess or lunch times, are set by the School Education Regulations 2000. The minimum hours of instruction for students are not the same as the minimum hours of face-to-face teaching time for teachers.
The minimum hours of instruction:
- Kindergarten: an average of 15 hours a week during each 2 week period in which the school is open for instruction with the delivery model determined by the principal (link for internal staff use only)
Pre-primary to Year 12:
- a minimum 25 hours and 50 minutes during each week in which the school is open for instruction as determined by the principal
- a minimum 4 hours and 10 minutes during each day on which the school is open for instruction as determined by the principal.
Schools are not open for instruction on proclaimed Western Australian public holidays if they fall in a school term. A public holiday reduces the hours of instruction for students in that week. Part-time Kindergarten students who are timetabled to attend on a public holiday do not attend on that day and are not expected to attend on an alternative day.
3. Responsibility for implementation and compliance
Implementation of the policy is the responsibility of the principal.
Compliance monitoring is the responsibility of line managers.
4. Scope
This policy applies to all principals in public schools and directors of education.
5. Supporting procedures
Configuration of the School Day in Public Schools procedures
6. Definitions
School day is a gazetted term date on which the school is open for providing instruction to students.
Hours of instruction is the amount of time students receive instruction in a school. It does not include recess or lunch breaks, or learning time outside of school, such as time for homework, tutoring, training for sports teams, music and drama rehearsals.
7. Related documents
Incident Management Manual (link for internal staff use only)
8. Contact information
Policy manager:
Assistant Executive Director, Public Schools Planning
Policy contact officer:
Manager, Schooling Planning
9. History of changes
| Effective date | Last update date | Policy version no. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 November 2009 | 15 December 2014 | 2.1 | |
| Minor changes to reflect Year 7 move to a secondary setting Approval D14/0522947. | |||
| 5 November 2009 | 28 January 2026 | 2.2 | |
| Minor changes to include reference to Public Schools D18/015165 and updated legislation links D18/0207680. | |||
| 5 November 2009 | 26 February 2020 | 2.3 | |
| Minor changes to contact information D20/0094086 | |||
| 3 February 2026 | 3.0 | ||
| Policy and procedures approved by the DG on 23 January 2026 D26/0061103 | |||
10. More information
This policy:
Configuration of the School Day in Public Schools policy v3.0
Supporting procedures:
Configuration of the School Day in Public Schools procedures
Policy and all supporting documents:
Configuration of the School Day in Public Schools policy Bundle
Policy review date
3 February 2029