City of Portsmouth College winter closures

All City of Portsmouth College campuses officially close for the winter break at lunchtime on Friday 19 December, reopening for lessons on Tuesday 6 January 2026. To all of our students – enjoy your break, and see you in the New Year.

Good to know

The College closure is in line with Hampshire County Council school holidays. Please note:

• if you have a safeguarding concern during this time, please call 999
• if you’ve found a course and want to apply you can still do this online, and a member of our Admissions team will be in touch in the New Year.

Support services

The festive season can be a difficult time for some, and we hope our students won’t need extra support. If times are tough, here are some organisations that can help:

• Hive Directory: Call 023 9400 7124 to access support services around Portsmouth.
• Portsmouth Mental Health Hub: Call 0300 123 6621 from 8am to 6pm, Monday to Friday for mental health support.
• National Domestic Violence Helpline: Staffed 24 hours a day, with translation facilities and assistance for deaf or hearing-impaired callers. Call 0808 2000 247.
• Samaritans: Call 116 123 at any time, confidentially and for free, if you or someone you know are feeling lonely, sad, stressed or in crisis.
• Switchboard LGBT: Call 0300 330 0630 daily between 10am-10pm if you feel alone and want to talk to another person in the LGBT community.
• The Mix: Call 0808 808 4994 from 3pm-12am every day if you are under 25 and need help with issues from money and homelessness to mental health.
• Kooth: Visit kooth.com for online mental health and wellbeing community support for students.
• Shout 85258: Text 85258 at any time for free for confidential text support.

Money and Food

If your budget isn’t stretching for Christmas, then these organisations might be able to support you and your family.

• OLIO is a free app connecting neighbours with each other and with local shops so surplus food and other items can be shared. Download via olioex.com
• Portsmouth Foodbank is run by Kings Church, Portsmouth and has bases at Harbour Church, Gunwharf, (Portsea) and Paulsgrove Baptist Church. Call 023 9400 6600 to speak to Citizens Advice, Portsmouth who are able to issue food bank vouchers if necessary, or visit portsmouth.foodbank.org.uk
• Some charities will provide financial support based on your circumstances even if you have no access to public funds and cannot claim welfare benefits. Visit grants-search.turn2us.org.uk