THE snow fell across Huntingdonshire on Monday, but this time the weather didn t prevent the schoolchildren of the district from receiving their education. It was a contrast to the situation in December and January. On Monday, the schools in Huntingd

THE snow fell across Huntingdonshire on Monday, but this time the weather didn't prevent the schoolchildren of the district from receiving their education. It was a contrast to the situation in December and January.

On Monday, the schools in Huntingdonshire were open despite heavy snow fall overnight and during the morning rush hour.

Children were at their desks and parents were not left making last-minute care arrangements for their sons and daughters.

And the main reason was down to the ability of teachers - and other staff - to reach the school safely.

Nigel Smith, deputy principal at Sawtry Community College, explained: "On Monday in Sawtry it didn't start snowing until 7am by which time most of the buses were already out on the roads, so the problem of people getting into school was not an issue."

He added: "Normally the decision to close the school is taken when you know there is a problem on the roads. You consult the bus companies, you inspect the site and you make a decision as to whether it is safe. You also look at the weather forecast for the rest of the day.

"When you employ 150 people you may have people living further away and you have to think about whether they are able to get in."

In St Neots, Longsands College headteacher, Robert Whatmough said: "On Monday at 6.30am, I listened to the road reports and I decided that staff would be able to get into work and we could operate as normal. When it snowed before Christmas I knew by 6.30am that a significant number of staff would not be able to get to St Neots."

Julia Elliott, headteacher at Crosshall Junior School in St Neots, told The Hunts Post: "We slavishly watch the weather forecasts and if snow is forecast we have a staff meeting the day before and see if there is anyone who won't be able to get in.

"The reason we closed before Christmas was because it started to snow at 11.30am and by 1.15pm there were two or three inches on the cars and we were worried about how children would get home. We used 'parentmail' to tell parents they could come and collect their children, but it is complicated. The last thing a school wants to do is to close - if the weather is bad in the morning, it means that staff just have to get up early.