DID you know it’s National Nap at Work Week? Thought not, probably slept through it, eh?

If not, there are those of you who probably thing it’s a sound idea, as in sound-asleep idea, natch.

Nap at Work Week is being staged to coincide with putting the clocks forward (I think that’s what we were meant to do, wasn’t it?)

The first rule is to tell your boss what’s about to happen. Then you can remind him or her that Churchill claims he won the war by having a post-prandial nap.

Of course, Churchill was the boss of the British Empire, so he didn’t have to get permission from anybody.

Apparently, though, his staff found his timetable odd, especially as he went the whole hog, putting on his pyjamas and bedding down in his room in the Cabinet War Rooms bunker.

The after-lunch nap for workers just wasn’t – and still isn’t – British. In spite of so many of our national symbols disappearing, this continues to put us apart from continental Europeans.

Noel Coward’s witty lyrics of Mad Dogs still hold true: “Englishmen detest a siesta.”

There are certain guidelines to bear in mind. Getting into work and then immediately going off to sleep is not really a wise move, as it can seem you’re merely hung-over.

Likewise, having a snooze on deadline won’t endear you to either bosses or colleagues having to take up the slack while you have a nap.

No, the ideal time is one which is most natural, namely around 2-2.30pm.

However, there is conflicting evidence of what is the optimum time for the metaphorical 40 winks.

Harvard University boffins discovered that daily burn-out means an hour is needed to get back to morning levels. Yet Loughborough University’s Sleep Research Centre claims that no more than 15 minutes should be taken for optimum benefit, or grogginess sets in.

This would be no use to my husband. He is one of those poor souls who, as soon he lays his head down, is plagued by all the worries of the world swirling around his mind.

Whereas he maintains that I can go to sleep on a log and instantaneously, to boot. Which means I’m the perfect candidate.

The only trouble is that, as a teacher, suddenly deciding to take a quick kip mid-lesson could put you in conflict with pupil expectations.

But, as the National Nap guidelines say, simply explain the situation with the words: “OK, I’m just going to take my nap now.”

Easy-peasy. Or not for education sector workers. The sound of the steady break-down of classroom discipline could wake you up.

Obviously, I’m being negative, as the National Nappers advise finding a suitable location, such as nesting under the desk.

Or find a corner where your snoring won’t offend your colleagues. Play whale music, fix an eye-mask in place and an inflatable travel pillow.

Maybe this would stun pupils into silence – long enough for 40 winks?

Disappointed to the Max >>>