To feel sorry for Scottish children?

[silver3]

Imagine having to go back to school in this suffocating heat in new blazers and school shoes. I know September can be warm too but, it seems to me, there’s nearly always a heat wave like this in mid-August. My DC have been sleeping in the basement on and off for weeks because their bedrooms are like saunas. Schools don’t always have air-conditioning. AIBU to think Nicola Sturgeon should just push the start of term back to Sept?

I wonder what other crazy shit southerners think about Scottish people?

I quite fancy a trip to Scotland right now. The idea of 18 degrees seems lovely. I’m sweltering, the children are grumpy and pissed off and we’re sat inside with the curtains shut and fan on.

@Caplin I’m so so jealous of you in your hoodie and socks.

I’m in the south, but well aware that temperatures vary (as I’m sure 99.9% of people are), but I’d rather be cold and have to warm up than hot with no way of cooling down. I’ve got two fans blowing the heat about, have cold showers, windows open etc. We bought some ice lollies, but you can’t even get halfway through without it melting down your arm leaving you sticky AND sweaty. I hate it. Roll on the torrential rain.

@eggandonion

It's a long time to December holidays, do Sottish schools have a long midterm? (Irish schools have a week, last Monday of October is a bank holiday in the Republic. NI schools don't seem to take a week).

Some have a week in October, some have two weeks (though I think some have changed that this year as they're opening a week earlier)

We had one day of hot weather in this heat wave - we had several weeks of scotching days and nights June/July.

So much so DD1 couldn't spend much time in her south facing room and we had to invest in anotehr air cooling fan - she was still sleeping downstairs at night. She hasn't needed to in this "heat wave" once yet.

It was 18 degrees on the Norfolk coast yesterday and that's not even 3 hours from London, where it was 35. The weather is highly variable throughout Britain...

I'm in Buckinghamshire and it's currently 26. It takes 35 minutes on the fast train to London Kings Cross

As well as being approx as far north as Copenhagen, Edinburgh is at the same latitude as Moscow. So quite a big bit of Scotland is north of Moscow. It's not so cold as Moscow because - as PP said - of the moderating influence of the Gulf Stream plus the warm wet winds from the Atlantic.

Agree with other previous poster that it was very cold in much of Scotland last week - 12C - and horribly rainy. It 's been warm (up to 20 C in places) in the daytime over the weekend, but down to single figures overnight, because of the clear skies.

have noticed this pattern of August heatwaves over the last decade or so and it’s escalating imo. It’s one thing if you’re by the coast, but it’s very draining in cities.

By "cities" of course, you mean London. Possibly Birmingham.

Liverpool today - 25c
Manchester - 26c
Plymouth - 24c
Newcastle - 19c
Belfast - 19c

OP's attitude does amuse me somewhat though as I used to live in the Home Counties and people do have some very odd ideas about Scotland. However it's far more common to think we have a climate like Lapland and trudge to work through snow every day between September and April.

you just presume Scotland is probably experiencing at least slightly warmer than normal temperatures too

Slightly warmer than normal in Scotland still doesn't mean suffocating heat.

There's much more to weather than just how far north or south you are too. For example, Shetland is a far north as Alaska, but doesn't get anything like the cold and snow that Alaska gets.

Don't worry about it. Our kilts are quite good for a wee breeze during heatwaves.

@silver3

How can it only be 18 in Glasgow when it’s mid 30s here?

Sorry, I had just assumed it myst be about 30 up there.

Whaaat?

Do you not know that the UK is 100s of miles from North to South, you don't really think we all have the same weather do you?

Maybe you need to go back to school

How can it only be 18 in Glasgow when it’s mid 30s here?

I can see the windsock of a small West coast airport from my desk and the wind is currently coming from the NorthWest, that migth explain it.

Oh my goodness. How unusual, someone from London pitying and suggesting ridiculous changes to policy in parts of the UK they have no idea about.

Tale as old as time....

I think the OP needs to listen to Sean Batty & get some realistic weather forecasts for Scotland 😂

Also there is no need to be rude and get into the whole “southerner” thing. If you must know, I wasn’t even born in the UK. I am obviously not only talking about today fgs. I’m talking about weather in general.

No I would not have thought that Scotland is generally in the teens temperature-wise in mid-August. Cooler than SE England in general, yes of course. But not that dramatically different. So shoot me!

@silver3

How can it only be 18 in Glasgow when it’s mid 30s here?

Sorry, I had just assumed it myst be about 30 up there.

Really hope you weren't in charge of homeschooling during lockdown.

@eggandonion - as a PP said, most of us have a week in October. We're off week starting Monday 12th. We also have a long weekend in September, just a friday/monday off school.

This is also a wee bit earlier than we usually go back, we're usually back around the 18th but it was brought forward this year because of Covid. I think the plan is to knock the extra 4 or 5 days off the end of term in summer 2021 but who knows.

@Newmama29

I wonder what other crazy shit southerners think about Scottish people?

I too would like to know!

Sorry to burst any bubbles, but the men don't all wear kilts 24/7. And we don't all live in castles.

14c for me, predicted high this week on my weather app is 17c. . I'm currently sitting in a jumper.

About quarter of a century ago the Braer was shipwrecked off the Shetlands causing an environmental disaster. It was early January and the BBC early morning news announced they were going to transmit live from Shetland to show us the wreck. In our house we looked at one another and laughed.

They couldn’t work out why it was still dark there when it was already daylight in London and repeatedly tried to go over to their “team on the spot”.
Thank you for reminding me of that OP.
It was the talk of the steamie!

Most of my schooling was in Australia. We still went when it was 40 degrees.

But thanks for the reminder of why I hate London so much...

To be fair to the OP, I blame the news where you hear about SCORCHER of a day in the UK, hottest day on record blah blah blah. All south-east centric of course. I'm halfway between Scotland and London and it's 23/24 outside so it's nice but not overly hot but they just give the impression everywhere is the same!

South west here. Warm but cloudy and thunder rumbling a round all morning. Def not stifling heat though! Just because the south east is hot, doesn't mean the rest of the country is!

Ah this has cheered me up, thanks OP! It's a balmy 17°c here today, unfortunately!

I'm now wondering though if our local high schools are outwith the norm, they all are pretty strict on blazers being worn, all state schools.