Snow and Severe Weather

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Our school is 'all about learning'. We have very high levels of pupil attendance and we promote the importance of children attending school every single day. That's why we never quickly or willingly decide to shut the school when the snow starts to fall.

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But in managing the running of the school we have to take account of safety as well as the school's ability to function as a school. We can only open when we believe the site is safe or can be reasonably made safe and we are able to appropriately teach and  supervise children. 

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When snow is forecast we watch the reports carefully overnight and early in the morning and constantly assess three key aspects:

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1 - Is the site safe / can it be made safe enough to open?

How we know: The caretaker and/or other local staff report site conditions from 6.30am onward and prospects for making the site safe for children, parents visitors and staff (by whatever time they arrive to start their work)

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2 - Do staff assess that they will be able to travel safely from their home to the school?

How we know: Staff unable to reach school must notify the headteacher by 7am. Staff travel each day from far beyond Chepstow.

 

3 - Are more snow or icy conditions likely later in the day?

How we know: We look at the weather forecast as well as reports from the site.

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Once we have considered these three factors (and any other additional factors) we aim to make any decision on opening at 7am. Any decision to close is a joint decision between the headteacher and Chair of the governing body.

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We will announce this decision on our twitter feed (@thedellschool), website www.dell.monmouthshire.sch.uk and on our school to parents texting service (Teachers2Parents). This information is always conveyed to Monmouthshire County Council who will display all schools who are closed on their website www.monmouthshire.gov.uk/school-closures