The cold weather continues and an amber warning for snow was in place last night, so some schools, particularly across Southwest of England, will have to close today
Schools across the country are closed today following fresh snowfall last night.
Several weather warnings remain in place today, including four for snow and ice and one for ice, as temperatures have again plummeted overnight. Forecasters had anticipated the mercury would sink to as low as -15C in the early hours of Thursday morning.
And an amber weather warning for snow ended at 9pm last night for most of Southwest of England. It means schools, particularly in this region, are at risk of closing today – and children will excitedly be awaiting their school or local authority’s big decision this morning.
A cluster of schools in Devon, a county hit heavily by snow last night, are closed today. Castle Cary Primary School in Somerset confirmed last night its boiler has broken, thought to be as a result of the weather, so it is closed today. However, most schools in nearby Bristol have beaten the freeze to be able to open, the council’s website indicates.
Families are advised to use the government’s tool – which collates such data – to find out if their school is open. You just need to enter your postcode in the toolbar here.
Have you been impacted by the weather? Contact webnews@trinitymirror.com
Schools confirmed as closed on January 9
Offwell Church Of England Primary School – Partial
Hennock Community Primary School – Closed
Chudleigh Church Of England Community Primary School – Partial
Tavistock College – Partial
Cockwood Primary School – Partial
Kenton Primary School – Partial
Kenn Church Of England Primary School – Partial
Starcross Primary School – Partial
Dunsford Community Academy – Partial
Okehampton College – Partial
Widecombe-in-the-Moor Primary – Closed
Cheriton Bishop Community Primary School – Partial
Newton Abbot College – Partial
Moretonhampstead Primary School – Closed
Ilsington Church Of England Primary School – Closed
Christow Primary School – Closed
The Promise School – Closed
Princetown Community Primary School – Partial
Exact temperatures recorded overnight across the UK are yet to be collated and shared by the Met Office. It has, though, confirmed the mercury fell to -8.4C in Shap, Cumbria, before 11pm on Wednesday. It was also -7.4C in Topcliffe, North Yorkshire, and -7C in Drumnadrochit, Scottish Highlands.
Speaking on Wednesday morning, Met Office Chief Meteorologist Steve Willington said: “With low temperatures persisting across southwestern parts of England, sleet or snow will fall to low levels in parts of Devon, Cornwall, Dorset and Somerset through Wednesday afternoon and evening.
“At locations above 150 m, 2-5 cm is possible, but over the higher ground of Dartmoor and Exmoor up to 10 cm could accumulate. More widely across southern England, a dusting of snow, up to a couple of centimetres, is possible as the system moves eastwards. The snow could cause some disruption to the transport network during this evening’s rush hour.”
Ice will be particularly dangerous across Southwest of England today, as surfaces may be untreated in rural areas. Once these freeze, ice will present a hazard for those travelling, including on foot and in cars, throughout today’s morning rush hour.
