Crawshaw Academy: School with more than 1,000 pupils to close early due to "exceptional temperatures"
A secondary school with more than 1,000 pupils has closed early on Friday.
In a statement to parents, Crawshaw Academy leadership said due to the exceptionally high temperatures and in the interests of the health, safety and wellbeing of students and staff, Crawshaw Academy will close on Friday July 10 at 12.45pm.
The Tyersal bus will depart at 1.00pm to allow students who use this service to travel home safely, parents were told.
An evening performance of High School Musical due to be shown at the school will continue as planned.
The statement continued: “Our theatre is fully air conditioned, ensuring a comfortable environment for our cast, crew and audience.
“Thank you for your understanding and continued support. We hope everyone stays safe and keeps cool during the hot weather.”
Temperatures have broken the record for the number of days the UK has seen such temperatures reach or exceed 34C in a calendar year, the Met Office has announced.
Forecasters recorded 34.4C at Wisley in Surrey on Thursday, breaking the previous record of seven days set in both the infamous summer of 1976 and 2020.
It comes as the country swelters in the third heatwave of the year, with conditions leading to hosepipe bans and early harvests as well as wider impacts on health, energy, wildfire risks and transport.
European forecasters also confirmed on Thursday that last month was western Europe’s hottest June on record and the second hottest June globally.
Scientists say these record-breaking weather events are becoming more intense and more frequent because of climate change, largely driven by the burning of fossil fuels.