What Are INSET Days? A Complete Guide for Teachers

INSET stands for In-Service Education and Training. An INSET day is a day set aside for staff training and development.

Every teacher knows how busy an INSET day can be, even if it seems like a holiday from the outside. While pupils get a day off, you're in school for training instead. Here's exactly what they are, why they exist, and how to get the most from them.

Key Takeaways

• INSET stands for In-Service Education and Training, a day for staff development when pupils stay home.

• State schools in England have 5 INSET days a year, on top of the 190 days pupils attend.

• They're used for safeguarding updates, training, CPD and departmental planning time.

• They're normal paid working days for teachers, and they're often nicknamed ‘Baker days’.

What is an INSET day?

An INSET day is a working day for school staff when pupils stay at home. INSET stands for In-Service Education and Training. You'll hear them also called training days, staff development days, or Baker days.

The purpose of INSET days is professional development. Instead of teaching, you spend the day on training, planning, and the behind-the-scenes work that keeps a school running.

Pupils miss a day of lessons on INSET days, so they can seem counterproductive to parents, who also might need to find childcare on top. For staff, they're a normal part of the school calendar and a contractual working day.

Why are they called Baker days? A short history

INSET days were introduced in 1988 by Kenneth Baker, the Education Secretary at the time. They were part of the reforms that resulted in the National Curriculum (opens in a new tab).

Baker added five training days to teachers' annual commitment, on top of the days they already taught. The nickname stuck, and many staffrooms still call them Baker days today.

The logic was simple. Teaching had grown more complex, and teachers needed dedicated time for training that didn't eat into lessons or their personal evenings.

How many INSET days are there each year?

State schools in England have five INSET days a year. Pupils attend for 190 days (opens in a new tab), and teachers work an extra five, making 195 days in total.

Academies and free schools generally set their own term dates and training arrangements, although most still run five INSET days each year. Local authorities or the school itself fix the dates for maintained schools, which is why neighbouring schools often have them on different days.

The picture varies across the UK. Scottish schools have in-service days for staff training, while schools in Wales also schedule professional learning days. The number and arrangements vary between nations and local authorities. If you teach outside England, check your school's or authority's calendar for the exact figure.

What happens on an INSET day?

The content shifts across the year, but there's a familiar pattern. The first INSET day, usually in early September, covers safeguarding and child-protection updates, key school policies and procedures, and start-of-year admin.

Later days are a mix. You might have whole-school training, department or faculty time, CPD sessions, curriculum planning, or data and exam-results analysis. Days near an inspection window often focus on preparing for an Ofsted inspection.

Some schools break the time up instead. Twilight sessions, held after school across several weeks, can replace a full INSET day and spread the training out.

Do teachers get paid for INSET days?

Yes. INSET days are normal contractual working days, so teachers are paid as usual. They form part of your directed time, the hours your school can direct you to work across the year.

For support staff, it depends on the contract. Term-time-only staff are usually expected to attend and are paid accordingly, but arrangements vary, so it's worth checking your own terms.

What you won't get is a choice about attending. INSET days are part of the job, not optional extras, even when the training feels more relevant to some staff than others.

How to make INSET days effective

The best INSET days leave you with something you can practically use on a Monday morning. If you're planning or leading one, keep the focus on practical, classroom-relevant training rather than passive presentations.

Build in evidence-based teaching approaches, give staff time to apply ideas to their own subjects, and plan follow-up sessions so the learning sticks. Including teacher voices in the planning helps too, since they know best what they need in practice.

It's also fair to protect some of the day for directed admin like marking or planning. A packed schedule with no breathing room burns people out, so it's worth remembering to look after your own wellbeing when the day is full.

Frequently Asked Questions

What's the difference between an INSET day and a training day or PD day?

In practice, very little. INSET is the formal UK term, while "training day" is the everyday name for the same thing. In some countries you'll hear "PD day" (professional development) or "PA day" instead, but they all describe staff development days when pupils are off.

Can schools choose when to hold their INSET days?

Largely, yes. Academies and free schools have full flexibility, while local authorities or the school set the dates for maintained schools. This is why two nearby schools can have completely different INSET dates.

Do teaching assistants and support staff work on INSET days?

Usually, yes. Most term-time support staff, including teaching assistants, are expected to attend and take part in relevant training. How they're paid depends on their specific contract, so support staff should check their own terms with the school.

What should early career teachers expect on an INSET day?

Expect a lot of induction. As an ECT, your early INSET days will be heavy on policies, safeguarding, and school systems, plus time to meet your team and mentor. Treat them as a chance to ask questions and learn how your school actually runs.

INSET days can feel like a box-ticking exercise, but the good ones genuinely sharpen your teaching and save you time in the classroom. Knowing how they work helps you to get as much use out of these days as possible.

Save My Exams helps teachers save hours of prep time with exam-board-specific resources written by examiners. See how teachers use Save My Exams, or explore the Save My Exams teachers hub for ready-made resources.

References

Parents 'baffled by Inset days', teachers are told - BBC News (opens in a new tab)

The School Day and Year - House of Commons Library (opens in a new tab)