Headteacher's Welcome
COMPASS
Severe Weather Arrangements
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Closure / partial closure before the start of the school day
Unless notified via text message, parents / carers should assume the school is open as usual. In the event of a closure / partial closure parents / carers will be notified as follows –
· Notification via direct parentmail text message and / or email.
· Notice on the school website – www.compass.dorset.sch.uk
· Notice on the Dorset Council School Closure Page - https://gi.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk/closedservices/Service/schools
· Messages via local radio - Greatest Hits Radio (97.2FM) will mention us ONLY if we are closing, and Heart FM (102.3FM) Dorset
If the school is closed, there will not be staff available to take phone calls, however if you leave a message this will be forwarded to the admin team who can reply as necessary.
In the event of a closure / partial closure, parents / carers should monitor texts / emails and the school website for updates.
Closure during a school day
Weather conditions can change during the school day, which may make an emergency closure necessary. If this is the case, taxi companies will be contacted and best arrangements made for departing students requiring such transport.
Parents / Carers will be telephoned, and students will be dismissed from Compass to go home or to a friend’s / relatives house or remain at Compass until collection or dismissal is possible.
Once the decision is made to close Compass, parents may collect their children at any time.
Should any unforeseen emergency occur necessitating a closure, arrangements will be based on the above procedure.
NB: In the event of significant power failure, communications will be near impossible. The school will do its best to provide information, however parents / carers are advised to consider circumstances and use their own discretion before deciding whether to send students to school or not.
Website
To check whether the school is going to be closed, please visit the school website. A warning message will be clearly displayed on the home page. In addition, Dorset County Council also has a website for schools to register with if they are closed due to severe weather. A member of staff will update this as early as possible if we are to close. This should be done by 7.30am. The Dorset for You website will show schools/colleges that are open and closed.
Radio
Dorset Council also advise radio stations on the school’s behalf, so please listen to our local radio stations for more information if you do not have access to the internet.
Greatest Hits Radio (97.2FM) will mention us ONLY if we are closing.
Phone
A Pararentmail willl be sent to all parents via mobile phones to inform you of the school closure so it is really important that we have your up to date details on file. If conditions permit, a member of staff will endeavour to get into the office but it would be appreciated if you could avoid ringing the school directly except in extreme circumstances, to avoid ‘blocking’ the line.
Closure During the Day
It is obviously possible for ice/snow conditions to worsen during the day making an emergency closure necessary. At this point, Parentmail and telephone calls will be made to parents and the Compass website will flash the information.
Taxi companies will be contacted and best arrangements made for departing students requiring such transport.
If closure happens then the emergency instructions parents gave on the students contact form will be followed. This means that the student will be dismissed from the Compass to go home or to a friend’s/relatives house or remain at Compass in our Emergency Centre until collection or dismissal is possible.
Once it is decided to close the Compass, parents may collect their children at any time.
Should any unforeseen emergency occur necessitating Compass closure, arrangements will be based on the above procedure.