Should schools be open in this heat today?

[DtPeabodysLoosePants]

Thankfully we are not in London but we are still due to have temperatures of around 33 degrees today. Dd2 is still at school. We are attending this morning for an event but I'm then thinking of bringing her home.

The school has no protection from the heat and after attending an event when the temperature was 26 degrees a few years ago and it was unbearable then I suspect today will not be good. I don't drive so would have to walk over a mile to collect her with my 4 year old in tow.

We have asthma and hay fever and I struggle to breathe when it's above 23 degrees so I'm dreading today.

The school also refuse to put suncream on the children or allow them to apply it themselves. We are expected to use 8 hour stuff but after reading about this it's not necessarily long lasting and is banned is Australia due to giving false security.

The event finishes late morning. Would it be shitty parenting to collect dd when it finishes so we can avoid the hottest part of the day? I really think schools should either have cooling systems in place or close but I appreciate this would cause huge bills and difficulties for working parents. I just don't want anyone with heat exhaustion or heat stroke.

Here in Germany we have Hitzefrei, which means school closes when temperatures hit 28 at 10am (I think - it's something like that). Primary schools offer care if they have an after-school care facility but classes stop. Secondaries chuck out. Happens with annoying regularity tbh that one or other of my dc arrive home early (I WFH) but I do find it eminently sensible, by and large.

Can you imagine the uproar if a school closed down a couple of days before the summer holidays because its hot?

The same schools that close down because of heavy snow? It makes sense to me to close them in extreme heat, this country seems unable to cope with any kind of weather, and it is getting worse.

Scotland start the summer holidays at the start of July and they end at the start of the last week in August.

I have no idea why England start their summer holidays more than half way through summer

The sun cream thing is a health and safety issue. Dds school are a bit like this but I insisted she took her own cream in and reapplied before lunch. One day they had swimming first thing so it would’ve been rubbed off completely before break! We have skin cancer in the family and I’m not taking chances. Once a day stuff doesn’t last all day.

In your situ I’d be tempted to not bother if your dd didn’t mind missing it.

It's my DDs' last day today and I am sure it will be hellish for them - a walk over to the stuffy church for a service this morning, marking time until the afternoon, and then all cramming into the hall for the leaver's assembly. Forecast is 37 degrees here. I just hope they get through it without anybody getting heatstroke.

It would obviously be a shame to cancel the last day when it's the send-off for the year sixes, though.

A change to a two-week October half term to blame here, too. This term has really dragged on and they've done very little this last two weeks.

We've been on holiday since the end of June in Scotland. Though sadly we go back too soon I think. We go back 14 August. ☹️. I'd happily keep them off till end of August.

How can schools not have access to fresh cold water??

I am pale and freckle and never do well in the heat. I had heat stroke twice when I was a child. Wasn’t nice.

How can schools not have access to fresh cold water??

Where do you think water comes from?
Think it through?

It's a heat wave predicted to have the hottest ever UK temperatures, not 'a bit of heat'.

I think it's reasonable to keep her off if you have worries about walking in the heat, asthma, hayfever and sunburn.

However I don't think schools should necessarily close, they have hopefully made plans to adapt to the heat.

There is no way I would be walking for an hour in the peak heat today, and having kids outside walking in the heat.

I miss the Scottish holiday times so much! Grew up there but now have my DC in England and it seems so wrong to still be at school in the heat- heat which is ironically worse than in Scotland! It seems like we miss most of summer and then are off in Autumn which is just bizarre.

We are expected to use 8 hour stuff but after reading about this it's not necessarily long lasting and is banned is Australia due to giving false security.

Where did you get that from, have never heard or experienced this and I live here.

As for closing schools when it reaches 33deg, hilarious. We have heaps of schools here that don’t have air con (general rule of thumb in my state is it’s not provided by Dept Ed and if you want it then the parent body pays for it and an agreement is reached with schools in regards to additional running costs - upshot being a lot of schools in lower socioeconomic areas don’t have it). Also, beggars belief but the design of most schools here does not take natural heating/cooling elements into account (far to sensible). We don’t have schools shut for half the year in .

It makes sense to me to close them in extreme heat

Except that’s not extreme heat ......

There is no upper limit in legal terms like in the way that there is for very low temperatures.

Schools should be finished by the beginning of July and the kids have a good 2 months off.

On that basis, no schools shouldn't be opened in the summer, it's ridiculous!

Eh, as a single parent I can't keep taking time off work for constant school closures. I've had to take 2 extra days off this year because DS's school closed for local elections. So I'd be peeved if they closed because it's hot!

That sun cream policy is ridiculous though.

If your going to keep her off just keep her off. Don’t send her in while your busy then take her home!

This. I don't have a problem with keeping a kid off for whatever reason, but if it's too hot then it's too hot. It's not just too hot when it suits you. Either keep her off or send her in all day!

Where do you think water comes from?
Think it through?
Sorry are you suggesting that because it's hot the taps don't work? That the fridge is broken? That school couldn't fill up jugs of water and chill them and then have them in class for the kids to drink from? OK so thry use the loo more but I don't get your point about where water comes from. There isn't a tap ban!

The bit I think is unreasonable OP is you using them as childcare as you're busy in the morning so can't have her home, so happy for her to go in until you're free.

It’s fucking stupid having kids in sweltering classrooms in July. I hate it.

School should not be open at all.. it's nearly August * misses point of thread. However surely walking her home in the middle of the day is worse than walking her home at correct school closing time? Due to the sunscreen policy, if she's very fair, and if there is truly no shade and you're sure they will be spending significant time outside I might keep her home altogether but I don't see the point half way through. Sounds more like you are doing what's more convenient for you

If your DD's not taking part in the event do you even have to go?

If it was me, last week if term, and I had health issues and a younger DC, then i wouldn't take DD in at all if she wasn't in the event. If it was something I was going to watch her perform I'd take her for that and then bring her out afterwards.

I think your DC's school's suncream policy is poor.

I'm assuming here that your DD is quite young.

Where do you think water comes from?
Think it through?**

Not sure what this is getting at.. we know water comes from the tap.. assume they are still working even though it's warm

I wouldnt send my child to school in 33 degrees. Its too hot to think.

Thanks @Booboo66 I was genuinely confused why the PP can't access water when the sun shines, as tho she only drinks from the rain bucket in the garden and it's all dried up