While some people work on a bank holiday, others make the most of it by enjoying an extra day at home, relaxing or tackling jobs in the home and garden.
Around Christmas time, extra days off could mean more time spent with family and indulging in festive treats.
Why do we have bank holidays?
Substitute bank holiday in December 2026
Christmas will fall on a Friday this year, meaning Boxing Day is on Saturday, so instead of missing out on the Boxing Day bank holiday day off, people in the UK have a substitute day on Monday, December 28.
So, if you have Christmas Day, the weekend and Monday off work, you’ll have four days off without using any annual leave.
The government website explains: “If a bank holiday is on a weekend, a ‘substitute’ weekday becomes a bank holiday, normally the following Monday.”
Substitute bank holidays in December 2027
Next year, the bank holidays look even better with more substitute days around Christmas as weekends will be doing us a favour.
In 2027, Christmas falls on a Saturday with Boxing Day on a Sunday, so December 27 and 28 are substitute bank holidays.
Plus, New Year’s Day in 2028 is also on a Saturday, so the bank holiday will move to January 3.
To maximise your annual leave in England and Wales next year, you could book off December 29, 30 and 31 and get 10 days off work over the festive period (December 25-January 3), if you don’t work bank holidays.
However, if you live in Scotland, a substitute bank holiday for January 2 will be on January 4, so you get an extra day off.
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When is the next bank holiday in 2026?
We still have a few bank holidays to enjoy in 2026:
- Early May bank holiday – May 4
- Spring bank holiday – May 25
- Summer bank holiday – August 31
- Christmas Day – December 25
- Boxing Day (substitute) – December 28
Do you work on bank holidays? Let us know in the comments below.
