Extreme Weather Closure Procedure

The objective of this procedure is to:

Make informed, timely and safe decisions regarding potential closure or late opening of the schools in the event of adverse conditions or other influencing factors.
Ensure clear communication to parents and staff of any decision made to alter the normal operational hours of the school.
Maintain the most constructive educational provision for all children given the evidence and information available.

Mildmay Primary School’s intention will always be to offer full educational provision for all pupils currently on roll at the school if it is safe and achievable to do so.

Considerations for Closure:

In making the decision to close the school the Headteacher will consider the following issues:

Is the condition of the school site safe for use (eg. suitable footways free from ice or salted/gritted for safe circulation)?
Are school services operational and the environment fit to receive students (eg. food, heating)?
Are staff able to access the school in good time to supervise children on site (eg. roads open, traffic congestion, buses/trains running), maintaining appropriate levels of supervision at all times?

Considerations for Late Opening:

In making the decision to open the school at a later time, the Headteacher will consider the following issues:

Will children already be on their way to school and therefore require supervision upon arrival?
Can the school reasonably expect to open and operate efficiently if a later start time is in place?
Are forecast conditions set to improve? Will children attending school be able to depart and get home safely at a later time?

In the event of a late opening, the school will aim for a 10.30am start time (unless otherwise advised). All children should access the school via main reception. All after school clubs and activities will be cancelled to avoid children or staff being stranded by a change in conditions.

Closure/Late Opening Action Timeline:

	Action:	By whom:	By when:
Decision	HT liaises with any staff on site to gather information relating to conditions and agree a course of action accordingly	HT/DHT Site Manager Admin Team	Earliest possible time – not later than 8am.
	HT/Admin notify Essex via the facility on Essex Schools Infolink service	HT/DHT or Admin Team	As soon as access to infolink can be established.
	Notify the Chair of Governors and CEO of the decision made by text and or e-mail	HT	Immediately decision is made.
Notifying Staff	Use pre-agreed Telephone /text messaging arrangements to notify all staff of decision to close/open late	HT to commence communication Notification by pre-arranged structure.	Immediately after the decision – not later than 8am.
Notifying Staff	Staff continue to make way to school for later start and to supervise any pupil arrivals – IF TRAVEL IS SAFE	All staff	At earliest convenience – as soon as safe.
Notifying Parents & Carers	Update Website banner/Pop-up to give details of closure/late opening on front page of website	School Admin representative	Not later than 8am.
	Use school text/email service to send details of closure/late opening to all registered parents	School Admin representative	Not later than 8am
	Update social media pages to reflect decision	School Admin representative	Not later than 8am

Potential Early Closure:

Owing to the need for parents or carers to collect children, the school will not consider an early closure of the school except in the most extreme of circumstances.

In the event that an early closure becomes necessary, sufficient staff will remain on site until all children have been safely collected.

Parents will be notified by the text messaging service and, if necessary, by individual phone call.

Taxi companies for those children coming to school in this manner will be notified of the need for early collection.

Staff with the most potentially hazardous journeys or risk of being stranded will be dismissed first and as appropriate to the supervision needs of the remaining children.