Half term travellers are being told to expect delays and remain patient as Border Force officials prepare to go on strike during the school break.

More than 1,000 officers based in Dover, Calais, Coquelles and Dunkirk are set to walk out for four days towards the end of the February half-term holiday, the Public and Commercial Services union has confirmed.

The move is expected to impact Border Force operations at both the ports and Channel Tunnel with travellers heading for Kent being warned to expect disruption and check services before they travel.

Proposed dates for the Border Force strikes are Friday, February 17, Saturday, February 18, Sunday, February 19 and Monday, February 20.

Strike action, warns the Home Office, will impact both passengers and freight coming into the UK via the Port of Calais, Port of Dunkirk or the Coquelles Channel Tunnel Terminal.

With UK schools across the country set to break up for a week's holiday from February 13, the strikes are expected to cause disruption for large numbers of families crossing the Channel after holidays in Europe.

Hauliers moving goods during the proposed strike action are also being told to prepare for longer queues at the ports and to carefully plan their movements and arrangements on strike dates.

Passengers should check the latest real-time travel advice from the operator they booked with while those awaiting a crossing are being asked to remain patient and respectful with officers working through the queues to process people and vehicles in France. All forms of abuse and any inappropriate behaviour will be reported to the police - insists the Home Office.

Military personnel, civil servants and volunteers are currently being trained to support Border Force at airports and ports in the event of strike action but the Home Office says anyone trying to enter the UK on the affected dates must prepare for disruption.

The PCS-led strike is about pay, pensions, redundancy terms and job security says the union.

PCS General Secretary Mark Serwotka said: “The strikes we have announced in the Border Force will impact on holiday travel during half term. For while the government brought untrained military personnel in to replace our highly-skilled and experienced officers in airports over Christmas, they won’t be able to do that in France.

"The blame for these strikes lies firmly at the feet of ministers who are refusing to put any money on the table. They say they will talk about money next year, but our members – who have been offered just a 2% rise at a time when inflation is around 10% – cannot afford to wait until next year."

Holidaymakers jetting to Spain also face potential disruption this half term with air traffic controllers at16 Spanish airports confirming they too will walk out every Monday for the next month - including on February 13.

Airports including Fuerteventura, Ibiza, Lanzarote, Seville and Valencia are all expected to be affected by the protest.

After two strong earthquakes in Turkey and on the Syrian border, UK travellers are also being warned to check the latest travel advice there before attempting to get to the region.

While the natural disaster is not close to areas most popular with tourists the Foreign Office is advising against all but essential travel to Sirnak and the province of Hakkari - two of the areas most badly affected by the quake which is now estimated to have killed 5,000 people across the two countries.