SCHOOLS were forced to close in and around Burton yesterday as the much-anticipated snow finally arrived.
Although it was not as heavy as some had forecast, the snow was enough to disrupt services and hinder motorists.
Burton and South Derbyshire College students were told to take the day off.
Meanwhile Victoria Community School in Victoria Road, Burton, and Lansdowne Infants School’s nursery in Goodman Street, Horninglow, also closed for the day, Staffordshire County Council said. No schools were closed in South Derbyshire.
The Fountains High School and The Fountains Primary School, both in Bitham Lane, Stretton, were both shut to pupils living in Uttoxeter due to transport difficulties.
St Peter’s First School in Marchington and St Augustine’s First School in Draycott in the Clay were both closed, as well as The Richard Clarke First School in Abbots Bromley.
Thomas Alleyne’s High School in Uttoxeter was also unable to open.
The icy and snowy scenes witnessed in Burton and South Derbyshire yesterday were a stark contrast from this time last year when children could be seen playing in paddling pools on Burton’s Washlands.
March 2012 saw temperatures as high as 20 degrees centigrade — approximately double the average for that particular month.
Staffordshire Police issued advice to pedestrians and motorists.
“Please take care on the roads and take a few minutes to check your vehicle, make sure you have prepared for longer journey times. Please stay safe in the snow,” the force said in a statement.
East Staffordshire Borough Council also warned that its bin collection service would be disrupted if the weather worsened.
The authority said: “This type of severe weather may have an impact on our service as refuse vehicles are vulnerable to skidding, with the potential to cause considerable damage.”
