BS: School closure links UK

Subject: BS: School closure links UK
From: Arthur_itus
Date: 29 Nov 10 - 03:08 AM

Might be useful to post the link for your county.

Here is Lincolnshire

http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/lincolnshire/hi/people_and_places/newsid_8412000/8412815.stm

Subject: RE: BS: School closure links UK
From: Arthur_itus
Date: 30 Nov 10 - 01:08 AM

Refresh

Subject: RE: BS: School closure links UK
From: Mrs.Duck
Date: 30 Nov 10 - 04:26 AM

My kids schools sent automatic texts to every parent so we knew they were closed but the bbc don't show our local areas. They give a link to the local authority site but they hadn't been updated

Subject: RE: BS: School closure links UK
From: Arthur_itus
Date: 30 Nov 10 - 04:46 AM

BBC Lincolnshire are very good at it.

My daughters school, which has 1200 students, have a website and keep it updated informing us if they are open. They opened and we knew that at 7:15am this morning. My daughter was not impressed :-)

Road conditions were pretty bad. Big heavy snowfall at the time of going to the school.

There was a snowplough pushing the snow to the sides of the roads. I don't think I have ever seen that in our town before. Salting yes, but ploughing......

Subject: RE: BS: School closure links UK
From: Arnie
Date: 30 Nov 10 - 06:58 AM

BBC Kent also has a school closures link and I suspect that all BBC regions do likewise. My wife is a teacher and her school phones the local radio stations if they are likely to close. Obviously the school has a password as it is not unknown for rascally pupils to phone in hoping get a day off! Snowed overnight in SE Kent but the roads are clear nr. the coast, although I hear that the Medway area is still suffering.

Subject: RE: BS: School closure links UK
From: Arthur_itus
Date: 30 Nov 10 - 07:52 AM

Well it has snowed heavily all morning here, and we were allowed to bring our little lovelies home at 11:45am.
Trouble is that my daughters school has 1200 pupils and by far the most pupils come in from the villages by coach. The coach companies told the school they were coming to pick them up, as road conditions were already appalling.
So not the teachers fault at this school.

Subject: RE: BS: School closure links UK
From: Doug Chadwick
Date: 30 Nov 10 - 08:00 AM

I remember snowy winters when I was a kid but I don't ever remember my school being closed because of it.


DC

Subject: RE: BS: School closure links UK
From: GUEST,Patsy
Date: 30 Nov 10 - 08:26 AM

Neither was mine and we wrapped up and walked in rather than by car or bus. The only concession they made was if it was too cold inside they did allow us to keep our coats on.

Subject: RE: BS: School closure links UK
From: G-Force
Date: 30 Nov 10 - 09:46 AM

Me too. I was at school from Autumn 1953 to Christmas 1965 and never once had a day off because the school didn't open. I can remember one or two pretty severe winters in that time, not to mention a few real pea-soupers.

Don't quite know what the difference is now, other than that people aren't prepared to walk anywhere these days (or allow their kids to).

Subject: RE: BS: School closure links UK
From: VirginiaTam
Date: 30 Nov 10 - 10:02 AM

Surprising that so many people don't realise how few kids go to local schools. Kids and parents rely on transport (private and public) to get kids to school. If coaches can't get them to and from school safely, then schools have to close.

Subject: RE: BS: School closure links UK
From: GUEST,Patsy
Date: 30 Nov 10 - 10:08 AM

The funny thing is I loved the fog and I still do, I remember some when you couldn't see a hand in front of your face. How we got there in one piece sometimes I will never know but my friends and I guided one another by hanging on to each other's coats like a teetering chain gang. It was a laugh though. At the time we couldn't work out why we should go through all of that to sit in front of a horrible teacher to do something that we hated.

Subject: RE: BS: School closure links UK
From: Mrs.Duck
Date: 30 Nov 10 - 10:24 AM

Very few teachers live locally to schools either so even if the children can walk in it is unlikely that there will be enough staff.

Subject: RE: BS: School closure links UK
From: Rockhen
Date: 30 Nov 10 - 11:20 AM

In most schools I work in, a great many of the children come from quite a distance. Children don't always go to school at the nearest school to them, these days. Once the school is open for the day, it is a huge responsibility if the weather turns really bad. Sometimes, like the school I was at today, they have to ring around every parent and get the children collected early. That is quite a big task, especially in large schools. The school I was at today was brilliant, all staff pulling their weight, doing their best to get to school and at all times, the safety and education of the pupils the primary consideration. I am proud to work alongside such conscientious people...come on snow, melt quickly, please!
In my experience, our local area is pretty good at informing parents as soon as a decision to close a school is made.

Subject: RE: BS: School closure links UK
From: Arthur_itus
Date: 30 Nov 10 - 12:14 PM

There is also "I will sue, if my little Johnny or Sally get hurt etc, etc whilst on your premises".

I remember when we had snowball fights, made big long slides in the playground and all the kids joined in. No thought about the injuries and parents that didn't sue.

Subject: RE: BS: School closure links UK
From: GUEST,Steamin' Willie
Date: 30 Nov 10 - 02:01 PM

We had planned a fairly important meeting at our Leeds office today which affected staff in South Yorkshire, North Lincolnshire and East Yorkshire.

We cancelled it.

Because the staff couldn't get in to the office, up to 50 miles away?

No, because most of the staff are primary carers of their children and most of the schools shut at short notice.

So, it isn't just school kids and teachers affected then.

Pillock here drove even further than they have to and ended up at the office playing Billy No Mates with a couple of fellow blokes who aren't primary carers of their kids.

Not making a statement one way or another. If it was appropriate to shut the schools and appropriate to make that decision as necessary rather than by policy beforehand, then so be it. The knock on effect says something about how society has changed over the years though. When I had young kids, the thought of shut school affecting a wage earner in the house was to say the least rare.

Subject: RE: BS: School closure links UK
From: open mike
Date: 30 Nov 10 - 03:20 PM

so i guess you have snow in england, then?

happy winter!

Subject: RE: BS: School closure links UK
From: Arthur_itus
Date: 30 Nov 10 - 04:05 PM

and we still have 4 months to go. Don't normally get it so bad at this time of the year.

Subject: RE: BS: School closure links UK
From: Mavis Enderby
Date: 01 Dec 10 - 07:45 AM

come on snow, melt quickly, please!

Careful what you wish for Rockhen! There's enough snow now to cause severe flooding if it melts too quickly.

I've not known it this bad in Lincoln since I was a kid ('76-77 I think?) and certainly not in Nov/Dec.

Pete.

Oh - and PS: welcome back Mudcat!

Subject: RE: BS: School closure links UK
From: GUEST,leeneia
Date: 01 Dec 10 - 11:33 AM

An example of what's going on. Or perhaps I should say 'what's coming down.'

http://www.thisislincolnshire.co.uk/news

Subject: RE: BS: School closure links UK
From: GUEST,Patsy
Date: 02 Dec 10 - 06:33 AM

Well we were told here in Bristol that we were to expect 10 inches of snow but there hasn't been too much of it yet. But the weather is expected to take a turn for the worse on Sunday. The worst of it so far has been the finger and toe-numbing severe icy winds rather than heavy snowfall, but that could change again by the end of the weekend. As long as the buses keep on running I don't mind especially as my job is a direct route to get to. The good side to schools being shut is the ease to get to and from work through the traffic. I am at that point in life where I don't have to worry about young children, child care or having to take time off for them is no longer a problem so I am lucky in that respect.

Subject: RE: BS: School closure links UK
From: Arthur_itus
Date: 02 Dec 10 - 06:56 AM

It just doesn't give up here in Lincolnshire.