Schools in the South of England have announced they are to close on Monday and Tuesday next week after the Met Office issued a “red” weather warning over expected record-breaking temperatures.
The move comes after the Department for Education told heads that they could look at ”closing classrooms that are too hot” to mitigate the effects of next week’s heatwave.
In an email sent to school leaders this afternoon, the DfE reaffirmed its message that it was not advising schools to close, despite the Met Office issuing a ”red extreme heat warning” for areas of England on Monday 18 July and Tuesday 19 July.
However, several schools have already announced that they will be closed because of the heatwave.
And the NEU teaching union has issued a statement saying it would “support headteachers making professional decisions to cope with the red warning, including in some circumstances to close or partially close schools”.
Reports of schools planning to close next week emerged today, with the country bracing itself for next week’s soaring temperatures.
Alan Roe, headteacher of Dr Challoner’s High School, in Buckinghamshire, wrote to parents to say that “due to the worsening weather forecast and the red weather alert (which was amber this morning), we have decided to close the school on Monday and Tuesday on health and safety grounds”.
He added that the school would open as planned on Wednesday morning and would close for the year at midday.
“Many of our classrooms are very uncomfortable when the temperatures are in the mid-20s,” Mr Roe said.
Heatwave: schools decide to close after red weather warning
He added that with temperatures forecast to be up to 40C on Monday and Tuesday, “we cannot keep the temperature in many of our rooms to an acceptable and safe level”. He said this decision had been taken in conjunction with several other local schools.
The Costello School, in Hampshire, has written to parents to state that after “the extreme temperatures forecast for Monday and Tuesday next week, we have taken the difficult decision to close the school on these days”.
Altwood Church of England School, in Berkshire, announced that it would be closing on Monday and Tuesday because of the “extreme heat”, as did Three Rivers Academy, in Surrey.
Kemnal Technology College in Bromley, south-east London, wrote to parents to say that following guidance from its trust and the DfE, “we have taken the unprecedented decision to close the school and ask students and staff to work remotely”.
“We apologise for the late notice but we have been constantly monitoring the weather over the past few days and we believe that this is in the best interests of the school community,” the letter from headteacher Emma Wride and executive headteacher Stuart Smith adds.
Ms Wride and Mr Smith noted that this was a “last-minute decision”, which could cause “undue stress” for parents unable to arrange childcare, and so a skeleton staff would keep the school open for parents with no alternative.
They said work would be set remotely via Google Classrooms, with students expected to follow their timetable.
Marlbrook, Little Dewchurch and St Martin’s primary schools, in Herefordshire, will give parents the option to choose whether their children go in on Monday.
The DfE’s email says individual leaders are “responsible for managing their own local circumstances”, but that they should refer to Emergency Planning Guidance and carry out risk assessments in line with government guidance on looking after children and young people, as well as those in early years settings, during heatwaves.
The email adds that this guidance includes the “use of ventilation, closing classrooms that are too hot, keeping children and young people hydrated, avoiding vigorous physical activity, encouraging children and young people to wear loose, light-coloured clothing and sun hats with wide brims, to use sunscreen, and providing them with plenty of water”.
The email does not detail exactly what temperature classrooms should be closed at, but the DfE has previously said children should not take part in vigorous physical activity on “very hot days, such as when temperatures are in excess of 30C”.
The NEU said in a statement: “The Met Office has issued its first ever extreme heat red warning, stating that dangerously hot weather is expected on Monday and Tuesday. The Met Office states that substantial changes in working practices and daily routines will be required.
“The NEU would support headteachers making professional decisions to cope with the red warning, including in some cases to close or partially close schools.”
The NEU added that it was “aware of many schools that have already had to decide to act on this” and said this was another reason why the government and education secretary, James Cleverly, should “act on ventilation in schools”.
The red warning issued by the Met Office indicates an “exceptional hot spell of weather leading to widespread impacts on people and infrastructure”. The warning covers an area including London, Manchester and York.
It has warned that people’s lives could be at risk and has indicated it is likely that a new UK record temperature could be set.
Meteorologists gave an 80 per cent chance of the mercury topping the UK’s record temperature of 38.7C (101.7F), set in Cambridge in 2019, with the current heatwave set to peak on Tuesday.
The Met Office has also extended an amber extreme heat warning for Monday and Tuesday to cover parts of South West England, West Wales, North West England and southern Scotland.
Yesterday the NAHT school leaders’ union said the government needed to give “urgent” thought to improving the state of school buildings if hotter summer weather continues to be the norm.
Some schools are planning to close early, allow pupils to wear PE kits or reschedule sports days to cope with rising temperatures next week.
A DfE spokesperson said: “There is clear government guidance available online to help school staff look after children in the hot weather, including the use of ventilation, keeping children hydrated and avoiding vigorous physical activity for pupils.
“Individual school leaders are responsible for managing their own local circumstances, but we are not advising schools to close.”
