Hamilton Advertiser

No warm welcome back as heating packs in at two schools

First day of term

- Kirsten Mcstay

Two South Lanarkshir­e primary schools were forced to close on Monday morning – barely an hour into the new term.

Bothwell Primary and St John’s Primary in Blackwood both sent pupils home as the heating systems failed.

Temperatur­es across the county had plummeted to around minus-five degrees this morning.

One angry parent told the Advertiser: “I’m absolutely fuming. I got sent a text by the school just after 10am this morning asking to collect our child in P4 as soon as possible and that the school would be closed.

“I heard the heating packed in, so the school was literally freezing.

“Luckily I was able to get away from work, but lots of parents would have been struggling having just started back.

“Our Facebook group page quickly filled up with frantic mums left trying to quickly make arrangemen­ts to collect their little ones.

“We understand the situation with the weather – but for the school to be closed within an hour of the first day back after Christmas break, where was all the planning for this?”

Des Dickson, operations manager for South Lanarkshir­e Council’s education resources, said: “Bothwell Primary School and St John’s Primary, Blackwood, closed this morning due to a problem with the heating systems.

“Arrangemen­ts have been made to remedy the problem in both schools and they are expected to re-open on Tuesday, January 9.

“Parents can get an update on schools opening and closing from the South Lanarkshir­e Council website at www.southlanar­kshire. gov.uk.”

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