Whelk Stalls, Snow and UK Managers!

Does it surprise me? That this country is incapable of dealing with snow. This morning I learnt that all Solihull, Birmingham and Dudley state schools were closed. For Solihull, the decision was made at 6.30 this morning. Apparently children could not get to school because the paths were not clear. However, I did a test walk and the snow conditions were perfectly OK for walking. The reason they don't tell us before the day that schools could be closed is - 1. They don't believe the weather forecast and 2. If they did say in advance that the school might close in the event of bad weather, some parents might not bring their children to school if snow did not materialise and the school did in fact open. Why? Some parents might keep their kids home saying they got "mixed messages".

Given that the country spends quite a large amount of money on weather satellites, it is a bit rich for council officials to be saying "we don't believe them". This bit of nonsense was trotted out by Cllr. Les Lawrence, of Birmingham City Council. He claimed on the BBC 1 o'clock News that weather forecasts could not necessarily be believed, hence his own 6.30 message that all Birmingham schools would close. This guy is in charge "Children, Young People and Families". I hope they learn in Birmingham that weather forecasting is not a science!

My point about giving more than 2 hours notice was lost on the Council. Because they want to see snow on the ground. See the proof! Then they can respond. No matter if parents have their day messed up. No worries for them. My suspicion is that they would rather close a school outright than have to jiggle classes around if teachers couldn't get in.

Incidently, when I rang Travel West Midlands to find out about buses, the young chap said "we've got a full fleet of buses running. I don't know what all the fuss is about. Some people are leaving work at 2.30. It's crazy!".

Maybe Cllr Lawrence could get a few tips by being a bus driver in the snow!

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