Nearly half of schools to remain shut in big freeze

CHILDREN from around half the country’s 4,000 schools are getting an extended Christmas holiday because of the freezing weather, which may also cause childcare and transport headaches for working parents.

The majority of the schools that are unable to reopen this morning are in rural areas and most will stay closed until Monday, in many cases due to burst pipes or problems with heating systems.

Media reports from some regions last night listed more than 600 schools that would not open today, the highest numbers being in western coastal counties.