Temperatures plummet to -13C in Shropshire as UK suffers coldest night of the year with roads and railways affected

This article is more than 2 years old

This article is more than 2 years old

Hundreds of schools in England and Wales are to stay closed for a second day after the coldest night of the year as icy weather continues to cause disruption.

Temperatures dropped to -13C (8.6F) in Shawbury, Shropshire, beating the year’s record low set on Sunday night in Dalwhinnie, in the Scottish Highlands.

Pupils at 123 primary schools and 25 secondary schools in Shropshire will have a second day off because of the weather.

In neighbouring Staffordshire, nearly 80 schools were listed as closed, with many citing untreated paths and fears that snow would have compacted into ice as reasons for keeping the gates closed. To the south in Worcestershire, more than 200 schools were listed to stay shut on Tuesday. Some said school buildings remained under “a deep covering of snow”.

In Gloucestershire, where about 200 schools closed on Monday, 80 schools remained closed on Tuesday, while more than 90 were shut in neighbouring Herefordshire.



Scores of schools will also be shut across Wales, with Caerphilly and Powys particularly badly affected.

On Monday, some parents complained of schools being closed in areas that had little or no snow. However, the Trades Union Congress urged employers not to force staff to make hazardous journeys into work. Its general secretary, Frances O’Grady, said: “It is essential that employers don’t force staff to make dangerous journeys for the sake of presenteeism.

“For many employees the bad weather will have made their commute virtually impossible, but thankfully many bosses now have bad weather policies so staff know what is expected of them.”

A yellow severe weather warning for ice will remain in place until at least 11am on Tuesday for much of England and Wales. Another warning for snow and ice covers eastern England and northern Scotland.

Fresh snowfall was forecast for higher ground. Some roads and railways were likely to be affected with journey times taking longer, the Met Office warned.

In parts of Gloucestershire, 36 homes were without power for a second night after ice and snow caused disruption across the country over the weekend. Western Power Distribution said the outage was caused by the weather and engineers were expecting to have the power restored by 7.30am on Tuesday.