Severe weather procedures

On rare occasions, the weather, particularly snow, can cause problems for students and staff getting to and from school. Sometimes the roads become hazardous and issues arise with public transport. Really bad weather is disruptive and can cause anxiety and stress especially if snow starts falling heavily during the day or if you wake up to a blanket of snow that you know is going to cause chaos on the roads.

BAD WEATHER OVERNIGHT

The decision to close the school will be taken by the Headteacher, other key staff, (after consulting with the Premises Team and Business Manager about the conditions in school) and with the Chair of Governors and Local Authority. Where the school is officially closed, all absence will be counted as an authorised absence. The school will be closed only in extreme cases.

We will ensure that our website is updated by 7.00 am to inform staff and students whether school will be open or closed.  We will also contact staff via email and telephone and families via email. Telephone, text and ParentMail. If the decision is made to keep school open, we encourage you to take care when travelling when the conditions are hazardous. It is better to give yourself plenty of time and arrive safely, than not to arrive at all.

BAD WEATHER DURING THE DAY

Should a severe weather warning be put in place by the Met Office or if the weather deteriorates throughout the day.  The school will endeavour to 

  • Find out which forms of transport will be affected and how this will affect students and staff getting home.
  • Inform students and staff of any changes to be made to normal routes so that they can decide the best route home.
  • Conduct a risk assessment to assess whether to keep the school open in relation to site safety and getting home.

If the decision is made to close the school early due to bad weather. The decision will be made by the Headteacher and other key staff after consultation with the Chair of Governors and Local Authority.

  • Parents/carers will be informed by parentmail, text, telephone and email that school will be closing early to allow students to get home safely before the weather worsens or before dark.
  • Should there be any students that we are not able to make contact with students will be allowed to call their parents via a mobile phone to let them know. Such calls must have prior approval of a teacher and will be made in a supervised environment.
  • Staff should not offer to give students a lift home.
  • Any decision to close the school early will be passed on to staff and students as soon as arrangements are in hand.
  • The school will only be closed early in extreme cases.

Decisions about closing the school or sending students home early are always difficult ones to make. We will make every effort to gather reliable information before making a judgment. We will check weather reports, get advice from TfL and try to assess what is happening elsewhere in the area. This will be done through communication with the Local Authority.  School will be kept open with staff on hand until the last student has left.

HOW CAN PARENTS/CARERS TO HELP

  • Check the school website, Twitter or Facebook before leaving home.
  • Plan ahead with your child so that you and they know what to do in a bad weather emergency making sure the school has all up to date contact details in case of an emergency.

EXAMINATIONS WHAT SHOULD YOU DO:

EXTERNAL PUBLIC EXAMINATIONS

We will always do our best to ensure that school is open for students to sit external examinations.  However, there may be exceptional cases when this will not be possible. If our website states that school is closed to all students and you are meant to be sitting an external exam on the same day, don’t panic! We will enter you for the next available sitting, for example in the summer term rather than in January.  If this is not possible then we will apply for special consideration for all those students affected. If the weather is bad enough to close our school other schools will be affected and the Exam boards will take this into account.

If school is open but the weather is bad you should still do your very best to get into school, as long as your parents think that it is safe to do so. Do not worry if you have tried your best to get in for the start of the exam but have still been delayed as we can, in exceptional circumstances, allow you to start the exam a little later, but you may need documentation to support your. However, we are not allowed to postpone the examination to another day. If it is not safe to travel to school, in most cases we can enter you for the next scheduled date for the exam you have missed. Please contact the school at your earliest opportunity to inform us of your delay. Please see our Examinations Contingency Plan

PPES & CONTROLLED ASSESSMENTS

We will always do our best to ensure that school is open for students to sit PPEs or controlled assessments. However if conditions are not considered safe and school is closed, these will be rescheduled at a time when it is safe to open school again.

If school is open but the weather is bad you should still do your very best to get into school, as long as your parents think that it is safe to do so. Do not worry if you have tried your best to get in for the start of the exam but have still been delayed as we can, in exceptional circumstances, arrange for you to start the exam a little later.


Adverse weather update Friday 2nd March 2018 Adverse weather update Friday 2 March 2018
SM SEVERE WEATHER EARLY SCHOOL CLOSURESevere Weather Early School Closure form 
Severe Weather letter to families February 2017 Severe Weather letter to families 23 February 2018
Severe weather policy approved 28 November 2016 Snow Routine Protocol Policy
Severe weather policy approved February 2018 Severe Weather Policy