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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to thonk 7.30am is too late to make the call on closing schools?

82 replies

k2p2k2tog · 17/01/2018 07:17

Snow chaos here last night, loads of cars stuck on roads, crashes, more snow. Amber warning in force until 8, Police saying don't travel unless you have to.

Council being crap as usual and won't be making the call on whether schools are closed until 7.30. There is someone manning the council social media so it's not like they can't get a message out. Lots of people will have already left to try to get in by 7.30. They should have decided overnight.

Grrr.

OP posts:
kaytee87 · 17/01/2018 07:43

I knew you lived in ED Grin I saw that too on their fb page and wondered how parents would sort childcare out.

If it helps my dh has just taken out wee one to nursery and said the pavements are fine. His train is also running on time.

IMightMentionGriddlebone · 17/01/2018 07:44

Agreed with OhYouBadBadKitten.

BikeRunSki · 17/01/2018 07:45

The dc’s school lets as know by 8 am. It’s not just about access to the school building itself, but about if enough staff can get in. Presumably the staff don’t all live walking distance to school!

Iprefercoffeetotea · 17/01/2018 07:45

It's not the Head who makes the call - it's the Council

This is wrong, not the timing. It's the head who knows where their staff are coming in from, and if the school grounds are gritted and safe. When it has snowed in my town some schools have opened, others haven't, mainly based on if enough staff can get in. My son's primary school had a lot of local staff who could walk, but it depends on the school. The council should not be making the decisions for every school like this, it just means they'll close all schools even if some could have opened quite easily.

Original poster
k2p2k2tog · 17/01/2018 07:48

it just means they'll close all schools even if some could have opened quite easily.

Or on the other hand, declare them all open even when it isn't safe to open them.

OP posts:
BakedBeans47 · 17/01/2018 07:49

Lots of people will have already left to try to get in by 7.30.

Well in that case presumably there’s someone at home with the child anyway so if it closes they’re not going to be home alone?

I personally am not leaving early I’d rather wait and drive when more people have been out and churned up the snow and also wait and see the school situ. It’s hardly the end of the world if I’m a bit late is it. These things hardly ever happen here, people need to calm the fuck down. I’m sure people are doing their best.

ApacheEchidna · 17/01/2018 07:53

I think basic common sense is that if there has been snow chaos and the official word is that the decision about whether to close schools is to be made in the morning, then anyone whose normal commute requires them to leave before 7:30 but would have to stay at home if schools close needs to tell their employers that they will at least be in late, if at all.

Obviously from an employer point of view having someone in late is better than having them not in at all

A decent employer would also say that they would expect anyone who has to come in to take whatever additional time they need to stay safe (eg using a longer route to stick to gritted roads)

really heavy snowfall happens in the uk rarely enough that it's not really worth the public investment it would take to have all the equipment and resources that they do in snowier countries that means life goes on mostly normal - so yes it is chaotic when it happens. With plenty old fashioned British pluck and phlegm, good-will and cheerfulness we get through the chaos by each doing our best and being forgiving of when someone else's best isn't up to their normal no-snow-chaos standards. We will all muddle through somehow.

stickytoffeevodka · 17/01/2018 07:56

Well, even if the school is open you don't have to send your child if you think your journey is too dangerous.

Growing up I got the bus to school and left after my parents had gone to work. Often the school would be open but the buses wouldn't run because the depot was 30+ miles away from school. If there was no bus most kids who relied on school transport had snow days and our head just accepted that parents relied on the bus and had no other way of getting us in.

I don't see the need to stress. If you can't get there, the world won't implode!

Original poster
k2p2k2tog · 17/01/2018 07:59

Lots of kids are sitting Prelims (mocks) at the moment - it's a stressful enough time for them without the Council's dithering.

OP posts:
MiaowTheCat · 17/01/2018 08:00

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

BakedBeans47 · 17/01/2018 08:01

Lots of kids are sitting Prelims (mocks) at the moment - it's a stressful enough time for them without the Council's dithering.

If they’re sitting prelims presumably they’re old enough to be left home alone/in charge of a younger sibling for the day?

Prelims can be re-arranged if attendance is a problem. It’s hardly the end of the world either, it’s important of course but not the same as the main exam

BakedBeans47 · 17/01/2018 08:03

I really don’t get the big deal OP. So you’ve been told, slightly later than you’d liked, that schools are all open - so business as usual.

ApacheEchidna · 17/01/2018 08:05

Excellent - very good for temporary to have snow chaos during mocks. Like athletes who train at high altitude and then come back down to normal altitudes and find their performance has improved - by taking mocks at a time when there is additional stressors they will ultimately improve their performance for the real thing.

you sound like you are choosing to catastrophise and focus on the most negative viewpoint you can. That's not healthy.

kaytee87 · 17/01/2018 08:06

you sound like you are choosing to catastrophise and focus on the most negative viewpoint you can. That's not healthy

Jesus, op had a bit of a moan about the council and now she's 'not healthy' 😂

ifonly4 · 17/01/2018 08:08

At our local school, I know teachers have to phone duty secretary between 7-7.30am if their not going in so she can arrange cover, which means teachers need to get a feel of what local roads are like before they phone in. If that's the same for most schools, I guess the school has to wait until 7.30am to report it's situation and then if there are lots of calls coming in, it'll take a while to load information for each school on.

Kazzyhoward · 17/01/2018 08:10

Yes, very annoying and unreasonable, especially for secondary schools when pupils come from far away. My son leaves home before 7.30 to get to school (due to crap bus service, but that's another story), that's only five miles away! Some of his class mates come from further away and leave home even earlier.

Very annoying during Storm Desmond a couple of years ago. Local radio and various other school twitter feeds were saying which schools were closed the night before. Our son's school finally made the decision at 8am when most of their pupils were already en-route so lots of them turned up at school only to be turned away again. If other schools managed to give better notice, I fail to see why son's school didn't!

Original poster
k2p2k2tog · 17/01/2018 08:10

I'm very healthy - thanks for the concern. Hmm I'm just sick to the back teeth of dithery decision making.

I do appreciate that in this situation the Council can't win - they open schools and they have parents either keeping their children off and criticism that they have made the wrong call, they close schools and incomvenience thousands and get criticism that they have made the wrong call.

OP posts:
Sirzy · 17/01/2018 08:10

It wasn’t dithery though was it. They said they would make an annocement this morning and they did.

Original poster
k2p2k2tog · 17/01/2018 08:11

duty secretary between 7-7.30am

Admin staff aren't in school here before abour 8.30 - I've tried to phone in before about a sick child and nobody picks up. Maybe that's why the Council has to make the call.

OP posts:
Butterymuffin · 17/01/2018 08:11

So they communicated the decision 11 minutes later than they'd said they would. I really think you're being overly moany about this.

twinone · 17/01/2018 08:15

As staff, we have to let school know by 7:30am if we are going to be absent.
Maybe the school needs to wait until that time to get an idea of staff numbers.

I think yabu to be snippy about it.

Spikeyball · 17/01/2018 08:15

Ds's school make a decision by 7am as this is when the taxis are setting off to pick pupils up although more often than not it is the taxi firms that make the decision.

Kazzyhoward · 17/01/2018 08:15

If the police say don't travel unless necessary, schools should close.

Unfortunately, the entire country would keep coming to a standstill whenever the police or weather forecasts make this kind of statement. They say it too often, so it has no impact. They are too over-cautious these days. They should only do it when things are really bad so people take notice. Far too many times, we've had dire warnings only to see a perfectly normal/safe day.

stickytoffeevodka · 17/01/2018 08:18

How is it dithery decision-making? They only announced ten minutes late, it's hardly the end of the world!

They weren't going to say "tomorrow we will update at precisely 7.41 and 28 seconds" - 7.30 would have been the rough time they expected to know what was happening.

Kazzyhoward · 17/01/2018 08:26

How is it dithery decision-making? They only announced ten minutes late, it's hardly the end of the world!

For kids who had to be on the bus/train before then, it means they're going to be late (or may not make it at all if they use special school buses where there is no later alternative).