Schhols closed again

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  • Stubbington 10K is the one I'm hoping to do on Sunday. Website says:

    SGR 10K UPDATE - ADVERSE WEATHER CONDITIONS WE STILL INTEND TO GO AHEAD WITH OUR 10K ON SUNDAY IF POSSIBLE.
    A DECISION WILL BE MADE BY MIDDAY TOMORROW, SATURDAY 19TH JANUARY.
  • PiersPiers ✭✭✭

    Cheers Tom, there was nothing on their website earlier.

    I'm happy to run it even if there is snow on the course, it's just I'm a completely cr*p driver when it comes to snow and ice

  • Its not that hard to drive in the snow and ice even in a normal vehicle.  Just need to go slowly and steadily with no sudden braking or turning, give plenty of space to other traffic..  All this concern about the weather is just sensationalism by the bored.

  • The schools close for health and safety reasons ? If schools are shut a lot of the kids will be in the park playing in the snow. There will be pretend fights, sledging down steep hills, snowball fights etc. All of which could cause injuries. But, the school wont be to blame as the kids arent on school property and therefore they cant be sued. The same for wet clothes. Kids will be more than happy to stay out in the snow for hours even if they are soaking wet after diving around in the snow. I think we, as a nation, have become too soft on certain things like this. But that is not to say that there arent genuine health and safety issues and the best thing to do would be to have the kids stay at home. But the teachers should still go in image

  • carterusm wrote (see)

    . But the teachers should still go in image


    or not get paid

  • to be fair even in this area........where they have asked for all non essential travel to be avoided.all the comps have remeined open for all year 11 and 13 pupils who have exams.........even if they have to walk in.

     Two of my boys are ready and prepared to walk the 5 miles to school  and then 5 miles back if needed next week for exams........and i'm grateful for the teachers geting there to enable them to sit the exams

  • Got an email this morning saying that school is closed and parents can come pick up the

    children and take them home. When I got there, the staff were there, the kids were there. Having opened up and got everyone in. What was the point in then closing halfway during the day when nothing was wrong? Conditions since then if anything are slightly better. I bet some kids are probably still there now and no teachers were able to get away earlier. Just causing problems for parents for no reason.
  • kittenkat wrote (see)

    I agree that teachers should still go in.

    So the kids might as well go in, and carry on as normal, rather than all the wringing of hands cos 3 snow flakes have fallen !!!

  • JoolskaJoolska ✭✭✭

    My secondary school did close a few times (early/mid 90s) for snow, but in fairness as a grammar school it had quite a wide catchment area and so there were plenty of pupils who couldn't walk to/from school if there were problems with public transport.  I don't remember my primary school (1 mile away) ever closing for snow and it had a very small catchment area.

  • I bet if you said to the kids that school is closing and they have to walk home then they would. So, if they can walk home they can walk to school as well

  • Surrey Runner wrote (see)

    People these days seem to be a lot more nesh and generally lazier than they used to be.

    When I was young and at primary school in the late 70s early 80s the only reason the school would close would be if the heating broke down - it did on one occasion.

    This was despite there being much more snow then and the school being in the Sidlaw hills above Dundee. When the roads were genuninely impassable we walked, though you would be surprised at the depth of snow you could get an old 1970s ford fiesta through. 

    Nowadays it seems that teachers close schools at the first sign of a snow flake.  

    Oh blimey.  My Dad went to school in Dundee and I can't tell you how many times I've had the "when I was a lad I used to walk 400 miles to school in 20ft snowdrifts, with no shoes" story...

    Should I call you Dad image ?

  • BarklesBarkles ✭✭✭

    Eek just seen this. 

    One or two points here folks:

    • No one takes the decision to close easliy. You make the decison based on: Current conditions, Forecast - usually from Met office, number of staff available.. oh and police warnings - and when they say no unnecessary journeys that does tend to send a message.
    • When school is closed I work from home as do all my staff. I work longer hours because I am not sitting in a car..
    • I far prefer it when school is open, because that way I am not buried in emails on my return. 
    • The school staff have to work faster when we do get back because we have to make up for lost time.
    And lastly - for the' lazy teachers' brgiade - how about this. If you want to know, come and shadow me for a day. Serious offer. I can arrange it with Govs and get clearance from LA. So do it.
  • BarklesBarkles ✭✭✭

    I would add that I do fully understand that an early decision is appreciated to allow parents time to sort out child-care. Hence the site inspections at 6.15am. 

  • BarklesBarkles ✭✭✭

    carterusm and Caravan Dave - surely you are not suggesting that any staff who work from home shouldn't get paid?  or do you just mean school staff who work from home shouldn't get paid?

  • If they do work and that can be proven then pay them. If not then do what most companies do and let them take paid or unpaid leave.

     

     

  • My local primary school is closed today. The conditions are OK for getting about and I'm surprised it's shut. The playground as been cleared, but the reason given is that not enough staff can get in. Most support staff live locally, but some teachers live a long way and drive in. Of course, they don't put themselves out and get the train/underground which are working fine.

    Don't get me started about the winter of 1963 (I can't remember if the schools were open or not)

  • Barkles wrote (see)

    carterusm and Caravan Dave - surely you are not suggesting that any staff who work from home shouldn't get paid?  or do you just mean school staff who work from home shouldn't get paid?

    I dont believe I said that teachers, or anyone, who works from home should not be paid. After all, I'm at home right now. The roads are bad where I am today but if I really wanted to I could get into the office 40 miles away. However, I am in the position where I am not customer facing, or team mates needing me to be in the office etc so I am working from home where I will be more productive (I'm having a break at the moment as I do when I am in the office) rather than be sat in my car for 4/5 hours of the day. However, in my view, anybody who works in an environment where they need to be there, should try their very best to get into work instead of looking out the window and thinking that they couldn't possibly make it in this weather

  • cartersum - are you really more productive or are you alternating from this site and more adult sites?

  • Maxpower North West wrote (see)

    cartersum - are you really more productive or are you alternating from this site and more adult sites?

    As I said Max, I am currently on a break for a few minutes. So whatever sites I chose to be on is irrelevant

  • BarklesBarkles ✭✭✭

    Interestingly... years ago it was policy that if you could not get to your own school, you had to present yourself at your nearest school and offer to help. This policy stopped as soon as it became OFSTED policy to ask for CRBs of all staff - even volunteers and , critically, it became an issue that would guarantee to fail the inspection ( and the subsequent sacking of the head)....

  • That's not nice MPW. You just CarterMSU look like a right idiot.
  • Sussex Runner (NLR) wrote (see)
    That's not nice MPW. You just CarterMSU look like a right idiot.

    And you just made yourself look like one, CarterMSU ?

  • Having defended schools in this thread I have to hold my hands up - several schools shut in Derby today for about an inch and a half of fairly wet snow - even a couple of secondaries.    I'm just off to order a daily copy of the Daily Mail.   

  • My boys school (high school) is close again today so that makes 5 school days in a row. They are going ahead with year 11 exams and encouraging those pupils to try and get in.

    I know I'm lucky as mine are big enough to take care of themselves during the day although the food bill has gone through the roof.

    This done mean that between illness, school trips, christmas and snow days my eldest who is in his first year of GCSE's has been to school for a total of 1 day in the last 5 weeks!

    But it's happened we'll all be fine and the snow will go.

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