Severe Weather Conditions

We are committed to making sure that the school remains open even in poor weather.  However, when
the weather deteriorates we have a duty of care for students, staff and you the parents, too. If the school
has to close early or not open at all on a severe weather day, it will be for one or more of these reasons:

 1.        The schools heating cannot keep students/staff warm

 2.       The water supply has failed (a basic Health & Safety requirement)

 3.       Safe routes to school cannot be guaranteed for students or staff

 4.       The site cannot be made safe (too much snow/ice to clear)

Please note: Parents and carers have the responsibility of getting children/students to and from school safely
and need to decide if the journey is safe when severe weather affects transport and/or walking conditions.
Parents/carers should inform school if their child is absent due to severe conditions making the journey unsafe.
If your child has a disability and/or learning difficulty your decision to take the journey must take this into
consideration. Please consider carefully and only keep children at home if conditions are unsafe.   

If we need to close the school, we will provide parents with the earliest notice possible so they can make
appropriate arrangements. We use the following Radio Stations to broadcast messages:

1. Heart FM 96.1fm
2. BBC Radio Kent 96.7fm
3. Ashford KMFM 107.6fm

In addition the www.kent.gov.uk website will also detail closures or partial closures.

Please note that the radio stations will only notify full closure of a school.  It may be possible that the school
will offer a partial service (possibly opening later in the morning once roads are clear or closing earlier if the
weather gets worse during the day). These will be notified by radio message, our telephone message or the school website www.ashfordchristchurch.com

It is useful for students to carry mobiles when weather conditions are poor as it will help with quick
communications.  However, mobile phones will be carried at the owner’s risk. On occasions, school meal
services may be affected by weather conditions so it is a good idea for students to bring in extra food.
Please ensure your son/daughter is appropriately clothed for cold/wet/windy weather and that shoes/boots
have good grip for icy conditions.