WINTER WEATHER

As we are all aware, the weather can be very unpredictable so we thought we would alert you to what happens if it snows.

All up to date information on school closures can be found on :-

LUTON BOROUGH COUNCIL WEBSITE, www.luton.gov.uk/schoolclosures

The radio stations have advised the Local Authority that they are no longer able to update live lists on their websites, but they will still read school closure lists on air.

Three Counties Radio on 95.5 FM

Heart Radio on 97.6 FM

Entrance and collection of children during snowy and icy weather

We have been instructed by the council that because of Health and Safety concerns we must only grit one path to be used by people who access the school site.

I know that for many parents this may sound odd, and that many of you have children to take to both schools and Greenside. However, we couldn’t possibly grit all the playgrounds and all the paths on the school site, so in icy weather please take extra care.

The pavements and roads are the responsibility of Luton Borough Council.

• The footpath from the Culverhouse Road gate that passes Year 2 classrooms and leads to the gate in Austin Road is the designated path for use in icy weather. Please do not use untreated paths or walk across the grass areas.

If it is icy or we have snow

In the mornings:

• • Year 1 and Year R children should be brought to the main entrance when it is snowy or icy.
  • Year 2 children should come to their classroom doors as usual.

At hometime please look out for notices to give information. If in doubt, come to the main entrance and someone will help you.

If your usual entrance is blocked:

• • Parents and carers collecting children from classes Beech, Pine and Maple and all Year R classes should come to the main entrance. Staff will direct you to classrooms.
  • Parents and carers collecting children from Year 2 should go to the classroom doors as usual.
  • Parents and carers collecting children from classes Oak and Willow should collect children from the classroom doors as usual

The gates into the Yr1 and YrR playgrounds will be locked if there is ice or snow.

ParentMail system

We have a system called ParentMail so that we can send text and e-mail messages to parents and carers to let them know if school has to close and when it re-opens. If you have changed your mobile phone number or your e-mail address, or you have not yet signed up for ParentMail, please contact the school office. However we can’t guarantee that you will get the message as soon as it is sent – delivery depends on your provider.

Finally, whenever we send this reminder, we always have parents ring the next day to ask if school is open. Please don’t ring school!

Whatever decision is made, the only certainty is that it won’t please everyone. As even the weather forecasters don’t always get it right, we can only continue to do the best we can at the time.