Snow Procedures

Information & Procedures

Wherever possible, we aim to keep open.

However, there are times when, for the safety of children and staff within school and travelling to school, we have to make the decision to close the school – especially considering the road that we are based on!

The information below will give an insight into what we will do when we have to make that decision and when and how we will communicate it. Please note our meals are not cooked on site so there may be times we have to take the decision to close the school based on the decisions taken at New Mills Primary, who cook our food.

Snowfall Overnight School Closure / Delayed Opening

Heavy snowfall overnight may result in access to the school being restricted or may stop children, parents/carers and staff from getting to school safely.

If these conditions apply, the following steps will be taken:

The Headteacher, with local school members of the school leadership team, will evaluate the prevailing conditions at the school site and in the area.
Staff will contact the Headteacher as early as possible, but before 7.30am to advise of their capability of getting to work safely.
If access to the school is regarded as too dangerous or there would be too few staff to teach the children, the Headteacher will take the decision to close the school/ delay opening. We aim to make this decision by 7.45am at the latest.
The Headteacher will then register the school closure/ delayed opening with Derbyshire County Council.

This information will be posted here: https://www.derbyshire.gov.uk/education/schools/school-closures/school-closures.aspxYou can sign up for alerts about school closures on this page.

The school will contact all parents via the school app (MySchoolApp) as soon as possible after the decision is made.
Our school website will be updated with information regarding the school closure.
If the school is opening late – it is essential that no children arrive until the new communicated opening time, as there will not be sufficient staff to supervise them.

School opening will not be delayed beyond 10am.

Snowfall during the School Day

In the event of a heavy snowfall and/or there is a significant deterioration in local conditions occurring during the school day, so that the return home may become unsafe, then the Headteacher may decide to close the school early.

In this instance, parents will be requested to collect their children from school as soon as they can.

Children can be collected by friends as long as the school is informed.

All children must, in this instance, be collected at the end of the school day and no clubs will take place. We understand that this may cause some difficulties but safety of staff and pupils is paramount.

The following procedures will be followed:

The Headteacher will contact Derbyshire County Council who will post the early closure here:https://www.derbyshire.gov.uk/education/schools/school-closures/school-closures.aspx
The school will contact all parents via the school app as soon as possible after the decision is made.
Our school website will be updated with information regarding the school closure.
Staff who live closest to school will remain at school later than those who live further away.
Decisions for following day(s) after a closure/ early finish, any decision about whether the school will be open the following day will be taken as early as possible.
If extreme weather conditions persist the school will implement our Remote Learning Policy

If the forecast is for more snowfall overnight, the decision may well be taken in the afternoon rather than waiting for the next morning, to allow parents/ carers more time to make suitable arrangements. In all instances of closure, the Headteacher will be in contact with other local Headteachers within the local cluster and the CMAT Trust.

**ONLY PATHWAYS AROUND SCHOOL WILL BE GRITTED BY SCHOOL STAFF. PAVEMENTS AND WALKWAYS OUTSIDE OF SCHOOL MAY NOT BE GRITTED AND THERFORE MAY BE SLIPPERY IN SNOWY AND ICY CONDITIONS**