UK school closures LIVE: Shutdowns and late starts continue as snow and extreme weather batter Britain today
SELECT schools are set to close again today after freezing temperatures and adverse weather battered Britain for the third night in a row.
Children up and down the country were told to stay at home due to the snow on Monday and Tuesday- with pupils in , Devon, Gloucestershire and worst affected.
And some schools have already confirmed they will be closed for today, with announcements made in Cornwall, East Sussex and London.
However, the icy conditions may not last for much longer, with the Met Office predicting warmer Atlantic air to arrive by Saturday.
To find out if your child's school is shut, the best thing to do is to check your council's official website.
Read our school closures live blog for the latest updates...
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Today's UK weather warnings
The Met Office has issued a number of yellow weather warnings for today
The warnings are in place for ice, snow and strong winds.
Check out this useful map to see which areas are affected.
Arctic blast causes overnight disruption to newspaper distribution
There was significant disruption to newspaper distribution earlier this week, caused by effects of the Troll of Trondheim.
News UK released a statement saying Newsprinters in Broxbourne was impacted by the extreme weather.
The statement read: "We apologise to retailers and customers who are not able to get a copy of their usual newspaper. Newsprinters will make continued efforts to deliver newspapers to retailers during Monday."
Yellow weather warning for strong winds issued in Shetland
A yellow weather warning has been issued in Shetland for strong winds.
The Met Office tweeted: Strong winds in Shetland
Wednesday 0700 – 1400
Latest info Stay
Transport secretary defends highways authority response after motorists stranded on M25
Mark Harper, the transport secretary, has defended the response of the highways authorities after drivers were stuck on the M25 for hours during the extreme cold weather.
Speaking with LBC Radio, Harper said: "My understanding, having listened to what National Highways have said, is a very significant amount of gritting did take place.
"But of course, that doesn't mean that you can deal with the consequences of the fact that it was a very severe cold snap and there was heavy snow across the country.
"Sometimes when you get heavy snow and you don't get a lot of traffic on the motorway, you do get the snow settling and it does cause congestion.”
Harper added: “But I know the staff of National Highways worked incredibly hard to try and keep the roads moving and get the strategic road network up and running as soon as we could after the bad weather."
Check here to see if your child’s school is closed on Wednesday
Follow the links below to see if your child’s school is closed on Wednesday.
- Cornwall – You can see a full list of shut schools in Cornwall .
- Devon – Find out which schools are shut in Devon .
- Derbyshire – click .
- Kent – You can use this to find out which schools will remain closed in Kent.
- East Sussex – A full list of affected schools can be found .
- Essex – The full list of schools closed in Essex can be found .
- Gloucestershire – You can find out the full list of closures .
- Pembrokeshire – The full list of schools closed in the area can be found .
- Buckinghamshire – Check to find out if they will be shut.
- Hampshire – click for school closures in Hampshire.
- Herefordshire – follow this
- Lancashire – click .
- Lincolnshire – go .
- Norfolk – See for closures in Norfolk.
- Oxfordshire – Check for the latest information.
- Somerset – follow the link to find out.
- Warwickshire – Click
- London – look here.
Thousands without power after major incident
The Scottish government declared major incident in Shetland on Tuesday after around 2,800 homes were left without power on Monday evening.
Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) Distribution is working to resolve the issue, but warned full restoration isn’t expected until the end of the week.
Graeme Keddie, SSEN spokesman, told BBC Radio Scotland's Good Morning Scotland programme: "Firstly I'd like to apologise to those customers still without power and reassure them that we are making every effort to get to them.
"This morning, as of overnight, we have 2,800 homes without power across Shetland.
“We made very good progress yesterday reconnecting 1,000 homes and hope to make continued progress today, particularly as the travel situation we talked about, the flights restarting, and also we've got 15 additional line crews are coming over on this morning's freight ferry and more by helicopter so that will make a real difference to restoration efforts.
"This has been a very concentrated and explosive weather event on Shetland which was far more severe than forecast.
He added: "The local teams have said this is the worst they've seen since 1995 over the Christmas period."
Train strikes add to travel chaos
Commuters urged not to travel as latest round of 48-hour strikes add to disruption caused by extreme weather.
Network Rail has advised people only to use trains if “absolutely necessary".
This comes after Network Rail workers rejected a pay offer earlier this month.
Members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union are staging two 48-hour strikes from Tuesday until Friday.
There are more rail strikes taking place this winter. See below when disruption is expected:
- December 13 and 14
- December 16 and 17
- December 24 at 6pm until December 27 at 6am
- January 3 and 4
- January 6 and 7
Young man tragically dies after falling into River Thames
A man in his 20s has died after falling into freezing River Thames on Monday. Police confirmed his body was recovered near London Bridge around 9.25pm.
The man was seen entering the water earlier that evening and the circumstances surrounding his death are not being treated as suspicious, investigators say.
This comes after at least four people, three of them children, have died in recent days after falling into freezing cold water.
A Met Police spokesman told MailOnline: “At 9.25pm the body of a man, aged in his 20s, was recovered from the water near to London Bridge.
“He is believed to be the man seen entering the water earlier.”
His next of kin have been notified by police but he hasn't been identified publicly.
Temperatures set to rise this weekend
While you can expect it to remain extremely cold during the coming days, Britain will start to warm up on the weekend.
According to the Met Office, this could be a result of Atlantic air returning from the southwest.
Temperatures could reach 11C on Saturday.
Cold and windy Wednesday morning
It’s going to be another cold day, with yellow warnings for strong winds, ice and snow.
The Met Office tweeted: “It will be another cold start this Wednesday morning with warnings for #snow, ice and strong winds active across the UK.
“Here is the latest forecast.”
Flights cancelled across the UK due to snow
Flights have been cancelled due to the snow across the UK, which has caused travel chaos for days.
The ongoing weather has resulted in schools being closed, travel warnings and some parts of the country without power.
The snow still continues to affect flights with hundreds cancelled over the past few days.
According to aviations analytic website , more than 500 flights were cancelled in the last 48 hours.
Another 75 flights have been cancelled today, according to the Independent, affecting as many as 10,000 passengers flying to and from the UK.
Cornwall schools late openings
Some schools in Cornwall have opened later today rather than closing.
- Bodmin College - 11.15am
- Boscastle Community Primary School - 10.30am
- Boskenwyn Community Primary School - 11.00am
- Boyton Primary School - 10.30am
- Camborne Science and International Academy - 10.30am
- Camelford Primary School - 10.30am
- Caradon Academy - 10.30am
- CHES Academy - 11.00am
- Fowey River Academy - 11.00am
- Germoe Community Primary School - 11.00am
- Gerrans School - 11.00am
- Grampound Road CE School - 10.00am
Cornwall school closures
The following schools are closed today due to the extreme weather.
- Halwin School
- Restormel Alternative Provision Academy - (move to online learning)
- Treverbyn Academy
- Whitemoor Academy
Met Office release four yellow weather warnings
The Met Office have released four yellow weather warnings for snow and Ice across the UK today.
The northeastern portion of the warning area has been removed whilst extended towards the north Cornwall coast.
The Met Office has stated that sleet and snow has eased and that there is now an ice-only warning.
Met Office reveals its Christmas forecast
The Met Office has given Brits a look at its forecast from Sunday, December 18 to Tuesday, December 27.
The forecast reports: “On Sunday, outbreaks of rain, sleet or snow spreading northwards.
“Rain, heavy and prolonged at times, will spread from the southwest, with a transient risk of snow, especially in higher areas.
“Most parts becoming much milder than of late by the end of the weekend. Into the start of next week, turning cooler again with showers, heavy at times, across the north and northwest and some rain in the far south. Drier, brighter conditions likely in between.
“The remainder of the period carries some uncertainty, but less cold and more changeable conditions seem more likely, especially in southern areas.
“Meanwhile, further north, we stand a greater chance of colder weather along with some wintry showers being more prevalent.”
Oxfordshire school closures
Hardwick Primary School in Oxfordshire will be closed today due to heating failure.
The school have said "we hope to reopen on Thursday 15th December following remedial works taking place."
Check HERE to see if your child’s school is closed on Wednesday
Follow the links below to see if your child’s school is closed on Wednesday.
- Cornwall – You can see a full list of shut schools in Cornwall .
- Devon – Find out which schools are shut in Devon .
- Derbyshire – click .
- Kent – You can use this to find out which schools will remain closed in Kent.
- East Sussex – A full list of affected schools can be found .
- Essex – The full list of schools closed in Essex can be found .
- Gloucestershire – You can find out the full list of closures .
- Pembrokeshire – The full list of schools closed in the area can be found .
- Buckinghamshire – Check to find out if they will be shut.
- Hampshire – click for school closures in Hampshire.
- Herefordshire – follow this
- Lancashire – click .
- Lincolnshire – go .
- Norfolk – See for closures in Norfolk.
- Oxfordshire – Check for the latest information.
- Somerset – follow the link to find out.
- Warwickshire – Click
- London – look here.
Essex school closures
Essex County Council have confirmed that the following schools will remain closed due to the severe weather.
- Hylands School in Chelmsford
- King Harold Business & Enterprise Academy in Waltham Abbey
- Shenfield High School in Brentwood
A look at Wednesday’s weather
The Met Office has released its detailed forecast for today.
Expect more cold weather, with some areas in the north facing freezing temperatures once again.
Some snow may hit the north.
Find out if Lincolnshire schools are closed today here
Simply follow the link below if you need to know which schools are closing due to extreme weather conditions in Lincolnshire today.
Temperatures to plummet once again tonight
The Met Office has issued several weather warnings tonight, as freezing temperatures continue across the country.
Much of the north can expect temperatures well below freezing.
Snow can be expected in some parts of Scotland.
How to check if schools in London are closed
If you would like to find out if your child’s school is closed on Wednesday, check with your local authority for information on school closures in your area.
Every school closed in East Sussex today
Here is every school set close in East Sussex today.
More are likely to announce closures before Wednesday morning.
Every school set to close or open late in Cornwall on Wednesday
- Gerrans School – 11.00am
- Restormel Alternative Provision Academy – CLOSED (move to online learning)
- Redruth School – 10.30am
- St Day and Carharrack Community School – 10.30am
- Boscastle Community Primary School – 10.30am
- Nine Maidens Academy – 10.30am
- Helston Community College – 10.30am
- St. Teath Community Primary School – 10.00am
- Bishop Cornish Primary School – 10.30am
- Halwin School – CLOSED
- Caradon Academy – 10.30am
- Liskeard School and Community College – 10.40am
- CHES Academy – 11.00am
- North Cornwall Academy – 10.30am
- Pencoys Primary School – 10.30am
- Troon Community Primary School – 10.00am
- St Meriadoc Infant and Junior Academy – 10.00am
