Flintshire: Parents express frustration over school closures

The decision was made on Wednesday to close all schools across Flintshire yesterday (Thursday) by the council's Emergency Planning Department following an amber weather alert of snow and ice from the Met Office.

But parents expressed their frustration over the situation after having to arrange last minute childcare.

On Facebook, one parent said: "Absolute joke - if I had decided not to send my child in I would have been fined by the school" while someone else said: "Parents who have lost a day's pay should be reimbursed."

Another parent said: "I'm self employed and have had to cancel work today because of the school closures" to which a parent replied "Ridiculous. I feel sorry for the working parents. You can't have a snow day with no snow!"

Snow in Halkyn Credit: Cal Jones (Image: Cal Jones)

Neal Cockerton, chief executive of Flintshire County Council  has responded saying it was simply a matter of health and safety.

He said: "The decision to close schools was taken by the council’s Emergency Management Response Team (EMRT) based on data provided by the Met Office on Wednesday afternoon which placed many parts of the county on an amber alert for snow on Thursday, as well as tactical information presented by the police at a regional emergency meeting.

“An amber warning means that only essential travel is advised, and only if safe to do so.

"As a council, we took a proactive approach rather than waiting for a potentially risky situation to develop.

"Our aim was to avoid children being stranded at bus stops should school transport have to be cancelled or face being sent home during the day which is more difficult to manage.

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“While we understand that some parents and carers may feel frustrated by the decision, it was taken in the best interests of the communities we serve.”

In Wrexham, six schools made the decision to close yesterday afternoon due to complications that arose as a result of the adverse weather conditions as well as staff shortages.

A decision was also made to close all of Coleg Cambria's sites due to the weather forecast and some buses across Wrexham and Flintshire were suspended due to the snow.

All schools in Flintshire and Wrexham have reopened today (February 9) and continue to run as normal.

Here's what the Met Office says today: "A cloudy day and remaining unsettled with showery outbreaks of rain, these turning heavy at times. Winds lighter and feeling milder, especially in the south. Maximum temperature 9 °C.

"A fair amount of cloud into the evening and overnight, with a risk of showers continuing overnight too. Winds staying light and feeling a bit chilly. Minimum temperature 5 °C.