More than 300 schools across England and Wales are closed today as temperatures are forecast to reach 38C, with the Met Office warning that the mercury could hit 40C later this week. The extreme heat has already brought thunderstorms and flooding to London and the southwest and caused major disruption on the trains, according to Channel 4 News.
The red heat warning came into force on Wednesday as the UK swelters under a heatwave that could see records broken. The current highest-ever recorded temperature in the UK is 40.3C, set in Coningsby, Lincolnshire, in July 2022, and forecasters say the UK could surpass that this week. Met Office forecaster Grahame Madge said: “The Met Office is flagging 39C as a headline maximum temperature on Thursday, most likely for somewhere in London or the South East.”
“More than 300 schools closed today as Met Office warns temperatures could hit 40C.”
More than 100,000 pupils are affected by the closures, with some schools moving lessons online and others shortening the school day to finish by lunchtime. Each school is making its own decision because there is no legal maximum temperature for classrooms. Working parents are entitled to up to four weeks of unpaid parental leave each year to cover sudden closures.
Welsh Government guidance, obtained by Wales Online, warns that children can be especially vulnerable to extreme heat and advises schools to avoid vigorous physical activity, maximise shade, ventilation and hydration, and ensure children wear loose, light-coloured clothing, hats and sun cream outdoors. Education settings have been urged to familiarise themselves with signs of heat exhaustion and heat stroke, which should be treated as an emergency.
The heatwave comes as experts warn that such extreme weather will happen more often and bring even higher temperatures “as long as emissions continue”.