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Transport Disruption Update 28.11.19

IMPORTANT UPDATE: Further road closures and rail strike.

Moons Hill Road closed between the school's top and lower entrances.

 

Train Strikes

Industrial action affecting the South Western Railway network are expected to affect train services from Monday, 2^nd December until the 20^th December.  A reduced timetable for this period is currently published by South Western Railway on their website, and demonstrates that both the usual morning arrival at Farnham station, and the normal services just before 5pm in the afternoons will not be running.

In response to this the school has put in place the following action plan for pupils who use the school’s transport to or from Farnham railway station, taking effect from Monday morning, 2^nd December and expected to run until the end of term.

Mornings:

Pupils will be collected from Farnham railway station at 9am, connecting with the expected arrival of the train from London at 0854hrs.  There will not be a collection at 8.30am.  Collection will be using the usual vehicles; the coach provided by our contractor, Hodges, with our usual driver, and on Monday morning only, the additional minibus for boarders returning to school.

Afternoons:

Pupils will travel to the railway station, leaving school at the earlier time of 4pm, so that they arrive in time to catch the 1628hrs service.  This transport will be by school minibus, as our coach contractor is unable to provide this earlier transport.  Pupils will be given instructions in school about where to meet, and at what time.  The minibuses will depart from the internal “crossroads”, outside the school chapel.  As normal, a register of pupils boarding the buses will be checked.  There will be no transport at the usual time of 4.30pm.

After-school clubs:

The school transport usually provided at 5.30pm will not operate.  This service will, instead, run at the earlier time of a 5pm departure from the school site, enabling pupils to meet the 1728hrs train from Farnham station.  Again, this will be provided by school minibuses, and will depart from the “crossroads”.  There will be no later departure from school.  Those pupils intending to stay for after-school clubs, but requiring school transport to the railway station, must use the 5pm departure.  For those for whom these arrangements affect paid activities, please make direct contact with Mr Jarred Cooper, Director of Extra-Curricular Education, at jcooper@morehouseschool.co.uk.

Boarders on Friday afternoon:

The boarders’ transport to the railway station will depart from the usual place (the “crossroads” outside the chapel), but at the earlier time of 4pm.  There will be no later transport.

Year Eleven mock exams:

Mrs Kerr, Deputy Head (Curriculum), has asked me to confirm that any pupils using the school transport to and from the station during mock-exams week (commencing Monday, 2^nd December) will not be adversely affected by their late arrival into school.  Arrangements are in place to provide such pupils with access to the examination hall, and should their time in any mock-paper be reduced in comparison with their peers, such information will be taken into account in the assessment process so that they are not unfairly penalised.

And so you will see that, with two road closures and with rail-strikes, we are threatened with a perfect storm.  However, I hope that the arrangements in place, together with parents’ own careful planning, will enable the final two weeks of the term to proceed with near normality – or as close to such an ideal as More House ever achieves.  We bear all with fortitude.

I am grateful for your understanding and very great support.

Yours sincerely,

Jonathan Hetherington

Headmaster

 

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A burst water-main has closed Moons Hill, between our top and bottom entrances.  There is extensive damage to the road surface necessitating relaying.  The expectation is that the road will be closed for all of the coming week.

School remains open and all functions will continue to operate as normal.

Access to our Main Reception entrance and exit remains open, but only from the Rowledge direction.  Cars coming from The Long Road (from Rowledge and Frensham Heights), or up Gardener’s Hill Road and from Frensham Vale, can access the top entrance, but will be unable to proceed beyond our top entrance, and so will be unable to access the lower entrance.

Access to our lower entrance (opposite Kennel Lane, and on the junction with Fifield Lane, Hamlash Lane and Moons Hill) remains open to vehicles coming from Frensham along Fifield Lane or Hamlash Lane, and to vehicles coming from Farnham or from Hindhead, using Kennel Lane from the A287.  However, access from these directions to our Main Reception car-park is not possible via Moons Hill.  Vehicles will need to go out to the A287 and use the Frensham Vale route, or the Frensham back-lanes.

There are likely to be delays caused by this disruption, so please allow additional time for travelling to school.