School closures are snow joke

kelloggs36

I didn't do any work today - but I had some to do. I'll have to do it before tomorrow though! My car is still stuck - hoping to dig it out when hubby gets in, so I can attempt to go to school tomorrow - with my 6 year old as his school is closed! I can't go backwards to drop him off before going forwards in this weather. If it snows later though, I may not go in but it doesn't mean I have enjoyed the day; I haven't as I have felt bad about it all day long!

System

well just heard dds school is closed to y7 y8 +y9 but not y10 y11 +y13 ???

Storck

CHRISSYG wrote: »

well just heard dds school is closed to y7 y8 +y9 but not y10 y11 +y13 ???

Is that because exams for y10 y11 + y13 are next week?

Surely it is better to prioritise the facilities and staff available for those with exams coming up.

kr15snw

elfen wrote: »

kr15, there is also that in some Scandinavian countries the schools actually have a holiday built in for when the weather is going to be at it's worst, so the children miss nothing.
Don't forget the mandatory change to snow tyres and the addition of snow chains if it's bad.

Hey Elfen,

I know our mate in Denmark says that the kids get very little time off the rest of the year due to the lengthy winter break. Makes sense I guess though when you know you'll get 3 foot of snow and ice every year

FatAndy

jaffacakes82 wrote: »

It really does annoy me when parents (like the OP) moan about how utterly inconvenient it is when their child's school is closed. What on earth do they do when your child is sick?

Things were so different back in my day. When I was at Junior School (20 years ago) the schools in my area never officially closed on snow days, but parents were told it was up to their discretion if they could get their kids to school or not. My sister and I always used to make it in and would spend the day in the Hall with up to 10-20 other kids being watched over by a couple of the teachers playing games and stuff!

Perhaps you might like to re-read what I said-

1. We haven't had any severe weather in this part of the country. We've had maybe 2cm of snow all week and on Tuesday and Wednesday the temperature didn't drop below freezing.

2. All the main roads in the area have been easily passable all week, even during our one and only snow shower which lasted all of one hour on Tuesday. All public transport has been running to schedule all week.

3. It appeared that most of the teachers and a large number of kids had already safely arrived at the school only to be turned away.


As I keep saying I realise that in some parts of the country the weather is exceptionally bad. But it isn't here. It may be difficult to understand if you live somewhere where there's six inches of snow and temperatures are -20c but do you really believe that it's acceptable to close a close a school because there's a centimetre of snow on the pavement outside?

rumncoke

Haven't read the whole thread but would like to add my opinion. I blame the blame & claim world we now live in. I do appreciate that individual teachers have no say whether to close the school & that heads do not take the decision lightly.

In the winter of 62/63 I was 6 months old & my Mom had me in a pram, 2 year old sat on pram & walked my 6 yr old sister half a mile uphill to school. Schools did not close then. Teachers shovelled the snow from the pathways to make it safe.

I know these days a lot of staff live a distance from schools but my view is those that can make it in should help to clear the paths etc. Before anyone shoots me down I know this is unlikely as these days they wouldn't be covered by H&S as it is not in their remit.

1 young teacher I know IS enjoying the extra time off, as she has commented that I know now why I chose teaching, "can stay at home in bed & be paid"

My DH has a 20 mile journey to work, & has made it in each day, as have most of the other staff., with the exception of the few that live in the heart of the valleys. Although we are not in the worst affected area I do feel that SOME people these days just do not make the effort.

Money_maker

dizziblonde wrote: »

Another problem's cropping up - the school I was at today was (obviously) open, but the caretaker there has now run out of grit to keep the paths in and out of the school safe (the kids are already cooped up all day since the playground's sheet ice). Pavement outside the school grounds was like glass it was snow so compacted (schools inevitably attracting a lot of pedestrians in and out) - amazed I made it back to my car (parked on the road as I didn't fancy getting stuck in the school car park) in one piece today!

Government has now sequestered all supplies of rock salt (grit) from source. Normal suppliers will not obtain fresh deliveries once they have run out.

FatAndy

Money_maker wrote: »

Government has now sequestered all supplies of rock salt (grit) from source. Normal suppliers will not obtain fresh deliveries once they have run out.

According to the BBC news yesterday morning in Scarborough the council were taking sand from the beach to use in place of grit. I realise that there may be environmental impacts if you took sand from some beaches but I can't see why more councils aren't trying this. In fact this sounds like a potential money spinner for any councils with lots of coastline.

longhotbath

Hi Fat Andy - Scarborough taking sand from the beach may seem like a great idea, but when it washes into the drains and waste water drainage system, it doesnt get washed through with normal rainfall, and if left can build up and cause flooding....

pitkin2020

FatAndy wrote: »

According to the BBC news yesterday morning in Scarborough the council were taking sand from the beach to use in place of grit. I realise that there may be environmental impacts if you took sand from some beaches but I can't see why more councils aren't trying this. In fact this sounds like a potential money spinner for any councils with lots of coastline.

In emergency situations I can't see the problem with using sand from the coastline, in small amounts. Removing too much sand will cause even more problems with coastal erosion so should not be relied on and only used as a last resort. As for being a money spinner, whilst they may be able to sell the sand to other councils it will cost far more in the long term as they will need a way of recovering what has been taken, usually by installing groynes or coastal defences which isn't a cheap job to do.