Do you ever keep your dc home because of the weather even if the school is open?

[Soubriquet]

Weather is horrible here. It’s cold, it’s wet and it’s sleeting.

My dc (8 and 9 (nearly 10)) walk to school on their own together. It takes 10 mins and is down a straight road with hardly any traffic.

Im keeping them home today because I don’t like the idea of them walking alone in this weather. I can’t take them. I’ve been disabled for the last few months and I haven’t been able to afford a mobility scooter or electric wheelchair, so I’m kinda stuck at home.

No

Of course they go in! Don’t be ridiculous.

If you are going to keep them home every time the weather is bad then you are going to seriously disadvantage your kids.

One way or another you need to sort this out OP for future times when the weather is bad. I've found that the kids that miss school for minor reasons are often the ones who most need to be there.

I have 3 DC at 3 different schools. Two schools are shut and one is open. I’ve let DC at the open school stay home because I don’t want to drive 15 miles in the snow.

I think in your situation though OP I would send them.

I sort of get it OP. I have MS so sometimes I physically can't do the school run.

So I moved home. To allow me and DC to use buses, taxis, walking, cycling and the car. And to meet more people and have a better support network.

I think you should reconsider where you live if it's impacting the children and their attendance.

I'm going to admit that today I've kept my youngest off. Older two's school is closed and to be frank I didn't want to have to go out again and juggle work and drop offs in a really busy city area.

Genuinely the first time I've been so lazy, although I feel very naughty!

For a ten minute walk I'd make him go but it's more like 45 mins or a drive.

If they had an adult walking with them I'd send them, but alone, I'd have kept them off in the sleet. Incidentally, our school doesn't let children walk to school or home alone until they're in year 6 (aged 10/11) and then only with a signed consent form.

toomuchlaundry · Today 08:15

Are school aware they are walking in alone?

My Y5 daughter has a 15 minute walk, which she does by herself. I walked up with her yesterday, as she'd had an awful nose bleed after getting up. There was one mother, I know her, she drives from the next village, on the way to work. No other parents.

The school encourages the kids to take themselves.

Soubriquet

I think you're being over protective and in the wrong. It's only a ten minute walk.

@SinnerBoy what age does that start from?

toomuchlaundry

what age does that start from?

9, she's at middle school. In Y4, First School encouraged them to start walking alone, after the Christmas holidays. They had to be OK with it and we had to write a letter saying it was OK. I still collected her at the end of school.

DD's school started late so everyone could get in. She kicked off big style about having to go in at all. Reader: she went in.

I have to agree with this. I am not one for all this 100% attendance bollocks as there are many reasons why a child might be unable to attend school. But this really isn't one of them.

Even in a snowstorm a 10 min walk is nothing as long as they're wearing the right gear.

I do think you need to come up with some sort of plan for the times where your kids need to go somewhere and you can't go yourself.

IME schools are very good at offering help to families. I've had teachers/family liaison come to my house to help get kids to school in the past.

I've found that the kids that miss school for minor reasons are often the ones who most need to be there.

Agreed.

@Soubriquet apologies if this is an over reach but I feel you on this one. I am having to contemplate a life with disabilities. The lack of ability to do what I normally do and protect my children in the way I want to scares me.

I feel you and I feel for you. I don’t judge at all but perhaps best to speak to the school about times like this.

Dds school sent a message out yesterday morning saying they were keeping the gates/registration open until 10am so people didn’t have to worry about rushing/traffic/bus delays.

We only live a 5 min walk and she wanted to go in early to offer to help teachers clear snow I don’t know where that child came from I think she was swapped at birth but it’s good that they were trying to help.

They closed the school today, although, what was scenes from Narnia at 8am has now nearly all gone.

They have set google classroom work for all though and did a live chat this morning - the same few children from dds class who went to school yesterday were the only ones logged on today. “I knew it would be you bunch logging on for work, 10 house points each for joining” said the teacher.

(I know that some parents will be working, some children will have had to have gone to family at short notice, some parents won’t have internet access or time but it’s always the same lot, it was the same kids in lockdown for online lessons too, the school has a lot of issues and the area isn’t great to say the least, a lot of parents I’ve met here don’t value their child’s education).

I have done very occasionally.

It doesn’t matter what we or school think OP, it’s entirely up to you (or it should be).

Of course they should go to school.
Could you contact the school to see if there are any other parents in the vicinity who could assist.
It doesn’t send out a good signal to your children to think they can stay at home if it’s too cold/ too hot etc etc.

We are in Scotland and the only way the schools would close if the heating was broken.
Send them, it's character building.

I'd have a look at your local council's hardship fund. There is a pot of cash allocated to councils to help vulnerable families in receipt of qualifying benefits. My council have largely focused this money on helping people pay energy bills or heating oil but various other essential items have been supported if evidenced by a strong case.

www.gov.uk/government/publications/household-support-fund-guidance-for-local-councils#full-publication-update-history

The school I work in closed as they had severe snow. My dd school was open but I have kept her off. We had a snowball fight this morning and went sledging before the snow melted! She's now doing a bit of work which I have decided she should do.

I don't regret not sending her in, it rarely snows round here and memories are just as important!

So it’s not going down as unauthorised absence? That surprises me, although maybe they were a bit more lenient because they are on the younger side to be walking to school on their own.

My rule has always been if we can get to the bus stop you can go in. All
our schools have always been on a bus route so in theory roads gritted or busses running to get in.