Raglan Infant School

Weather Policy

Guidelines for Snow and Icy Weather

snowman Severe weather is often forecast in advance, so the probability of disruption is frequently known before the event.

If the LA issues a severe weather warning and advises schools to close, we would follow that guidance.

In other circumstances a decision has to be made about whether the school can safely care for the children. We need to take care that any decision to close the school is the result of a risk assessment that covers the full situation and includes more than the late arrival of some staff.

Key questions are:

Can an entrance to the school be made safe (Most likely the Wellington Road entrance)?
Is there enough salt to keep one entrance to the school and a path across the playground clear throughout the day?
Do 12 classroom staff live within walking distance, plus 2 others?
Are general travelling conditions, as far as the media is reporting, likely to result in more distant staff being late rather than unable to get to school at all?
Are conditions, as far as the media is reporting, likely to get worse during the day?

If the answers to the first 5 questions is ‘yes’, and the last question ‘no’, the school can safely open albeit with considerable adjustment to the first session. The decision has to be made by the headteacher, liaising with the most senior person on site and the Chair of Governors. The site staff will clearly need to be consulted, but it is not their responsibility to make the decision, and it should not be expected of them. Phone contact is likely to be needed, and the most senior teacher on site will need to talk with the headteacher, the site staff, and probably the junior school too.

If the decision is to close the school parents and staff need to be told as soon as possible. The Headteacher (Deputy Headteacher and/or the Chair of Governors) should notify the Site Manager and the Office staff and the council ECSL services as soon as the decision to close the school is taken. The office staff will than record a phone message for parents. The School Business Manager (Giuseppa) and the ICT technician (Ila) also needs to know promptly in order for the information to be put on the school website, so parents can log on to the site and acknowledge whether the school will be closed.

The staff contact system should be used to inform all members of staff.
A notice should be placed at the entrances to the school for any parent who may not have accessed the phone or websites.

Members of staff who have travelled on foot should not leave school until 10.00am at the earliest.

All staff should note that a day lost through snow is still a working day, and they should work at home if possible. (the Local Authority guidance is that staff should present themselves for work at the nearest available school if their own school is closed or inaccessible.)

If the school is to remain open the greatest risk is that staff who have to drive to work are delayed and arrive late. In all but the most difficult situations, people will have arrived by 10.30 therefore the period between 8.40 and 10.30 needs managing.

Staff who travel by foot will have arrived by the start of school and should be distributed among the classes in the main building. Currently there should be enough for a teacher or teaching assistant in all 12 rooms. As children arrive they should go to their own classroom, with classes 13 and 14 spread amongst the other classrooms.

Office staff will need to stay in the office area to direct parents and children. Since all will be using the front entrance this is particularly important to avoid congestion.

The parents of children with one to one support should be phoned first thing and asked to keep their child at home because we cannot provide support until later in the day.

As they arrive parents and children should be directed through the office entrance into the main building. Many parents are likely to be late so it would help if they took their own child to class leaving the office staff free to direct people and deal with anything else that arises.

There is no expectation that lessons will occur. This would be an emergency situation where care of the children is all that can reasonably happen. Drawing, reading a story, watching a video is the kind of thing that could be done.

When staff get to school they should go to their classrooms and gradually the day will resume its normal character. Classes 13 and 14 should not go to their building until there are at least 4 members of staff between the two classrooms. The Nursery however will have to be closed according to circumstances.

Communication

Unless staff are telephoned and told to stay at home, everyone should assume the school is open and come to work as close to normal time as possible. Some staff may have particular difficulties resulting in increased and unacceptable risk, and should speak with the headteacher individually beforehand if possible so that suitable adjustments can be made.

Parents should have the confirmed web address to consult before leaving for school, this is:- www.raglaninfant.org and it can be found at the top hand corner of the weekly newsletter. Many will undoubtedly phone and if possible a message should be left on the answering service.

Playtime, lunchtime and the end of the day

There is every chance that playtime and lunch time will be wet. The site staff will be asked to keep a path to classes 13 and 14. Children will need to be escorted at all times across these and reminded to stay on the path, tempting though the snow may be.

At the end of the day, children and staff should leave the premises as promptly as possible in order to get safely home. If the playground is clear enough, children can leave via the normal routes. If not, everyone will need to use the office entrance.

All staff, including office staff, should leave as soon as the children have gone.

SunSmart Sun Protection Policy

At Raglan Infant School we want staff and pupils to enjoy the sun safely and have a number of measures in place to achieve this.

Education

All children will have at least 1 SunSmart lesson each year.
An assembly will be held at the beginning of the Summer term promoting Sun Safety.
All parents will be able to access our Sun Protection Policy on our website.
Children will regularly be reminded on hot days of the need to stay in the shade and to take in fluids.
On particularly hot days younger children will return to classrooms early to avoid the midday sun.

Shade

We have some shade in the playground from a sun canopy.
Children are able to go on the field where there is some natural shade.

Timetabling

Events such as Sports D
When it is ho
ays are carefully risk assessed and managed to ensure the children have adequate shade, rests and fluids.
t afternoon PE sessions will be adjusted accordingly.

Clothing

All children are asked to bring in suitable hats for protection.
Children wear T shirts rather than vests for outside PE.
Please ensure that on Sports Days children wear a T shirt rather than a vest.
Sunglasses may be worn in individual circumstances, depending on the needs of the child.

Sunscreen

Parents/Carers are encouraged to apply sun screen to their children before school .

Fluid intake

Water fountains are situated in the corridor and in the playground.
Children are encouraged to bring in water bottles so that they can access them easily during the day. Bottles can be refilled in the classrooms.

This policy will be reviewed and updated regularly.
Updated May 2010

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