Easter 2024 will fall a week earlier in 2024 than it did in 2023 and most school holidays are likely to start on Good Friday – with children in school right up to the last minute. The date of Easter changes every year because it is based on a lunisolar calendar rather than a fixed Gregorian calendar date.
Some schools could choose to start holidays the week before Easter – but the dates are set by local authorities and school management on a case-by-case basis, so dates will vary across the country.
The calculation for Easter is based on the ecclesiastical approximation of the March equinox and the lunar cycle. Specifically, it is set to fall on the first Sunday following the first full moon after the March equinox. This means Easter can vary between March 22 and April 25.
This system traces back to the First Council of Nicaea in 325 AD, where it was established that Easter would be celebrated on the Sunday following the Paschal Full Moon, which is the first full moon after the vernal equinox. The timing is aligned with the lunar cycle, resulting in the shifting dates each year according to the cycles of the moon and equinoxes.
So this year, 2024, Easter Sunday will fall on March 31. This means you will also get March 29 off as Good Friday and April 1 off as Easter Monday.
