Church leaders worry pupils will miss observances during Holy Week

Easter falls on the first Sunday after the first full moon after the Spring Equinox, which can be anytime between 22 March and 25 April.

This moving date has led to uneven term times, which Essex County Council hopes to change with a fixed mid-April break.

But plans to change school holidays are running into opposition from leaders of the Roman Catholic Church, who worry the celebration of Easter will fall during term time.

Father George Stokes of Brentwood Cathedral said: "We will still have Good Friday and Easter Monday as public holidays.

"But we would have liked to see a good deal more made of Easter, which is the principal feast for Christians."

Councillor Iris Pummell said she was disappointed that churches and religious schools were upset, because she said they had been consulted about the new scheme.

She said: "We had a meeting with all of the Catholic schools within Essex to explain to them the way we wanted to go forward."

Staff and pupils at St Benedicts College in Colchester told BBC Look East they still feel it is their right to be able to celebrate Easter whenever it falls on the calendar.