Thank you to everyone who helped get students in safely today (including all the patient drivers).

We`ll be in touch later today if we need any alternative arrangements for the end of the day.

#communityspirit #droitwich ...

It has improved quite a lot in the last hour.

Still, please try to not drive this way so that any students who do need to come in on foot from Westacre direction have an easier route. ...

1. The water is currently receding (but there is so much of it that it will take a while to clear and assuming the river doesn`t rise again).

2. The road between the leisure centre and DSHS is passable with care in a regular vehicle but only really in single file (the side closest to the leisure centre is above the kerb for approx 15m.

3. The water that is still over the road (see photo) between DSHS and the leisure centre is very shallow when there is no vehicle traffic. I have walked through it just now with ease and dry feet. However, the area will be contested by vehicles trying to use it too / vehicle movements will also cause a wash.

The plan:

If you normally come via the Westlands side your journey is safe (I have also checked the dip just off the mini roundabout) but is likely to be busier than normal.

If your child gets a school bus they will be able to clear the water with no issue (I have just watched two buses do it). We will ask the drivers to do their drop outside the top gate.

If you normally drop your child off in a car, I urge you in the strongest possible terms to take the route via Westwood and drop your child ahead of the mini roundabout so that traffic on the road by the leisure centre is kept to an absolute minimum to allow any students who need to come to school on foot safe passage through the very very shallow water.

If your child normally walks to school from the Westacre side and can`t get dropped off in a car this morning, I will place plenty of my staff on the road to make sure that we stop the traffic and allow them to walk through the very shallow water safely and without getting splashed.

Clearly there is a chance that collection will be tricky too and we will monitor the situation closely and make appropriate and safe arrangements as necessary. Every day in school is vital, especially for Year 11 so please do support your child by getting them in to school. We will keep them safe on the way in and the way home.

We won`t run any late detentions today.

Also, I`m more than happy for students to wear what they would like on their feet. We don`t want to miss a day of school because of wet shoes.

Thank you. ...

We’ve been closely monitoring the river level and it has risen by approx. 15cm per hour during the day so far and is currently not far off the top of the internal arch of the bridge. We don’t think it will start to flood the road until late afternoon / early evening but as a precaution (in case the rate increases) the school buses* will be doing collection from Westacre at 3pm. We will dismiss at 14.45 to make sure students have had enough time to get up there. Students will be allowed to use their phones between 13.50 and 14.30 to allow you to make arrangements. Students who can’t be collected until 15.10 are welcome to wait (supervised) in the dining halls and will be allowed to leave via the top and middle gate. Please do not drive in the bus bay area or arrange to meet your child there, even if the road is clear (the grass areas are totally drenched and there is already a lot of water in the bus bay turn off).

We’ll email again later this evening with an update. The worst case scenario is that we are open but access will be via the top gate only but hopefully if there is flooding it will have subsided.

* the Martin Hussingtree / Fernhill Heath bus will run as normal (it is a public bus) and will collect from the middle gate. ...

Lovely to hear that loads of Louie`s Year 11 mates came to watch him play for Worcester Wolves U16 Academy in their quarter final of the national basketball cup today 🏀.

Louie played brilliantly but not the result he or his team wanted, unfortunately.

#recognition #talent #sport #year11 #friendship #basketball #basketballislife #droitwich ...