As two schools in Suffolk and Essex closed today because of heating problems, parents were urged to keep in touch with their child’s school in case more shut down due to ice and snow.

Exning Primary School near Newmarket was forced to close its doors today because it had no water supply, while St Luke’s Primary in Tiptree had to close because one of its two boilers was broken. Due to the cold weather, this meant St Luke’s was unable to heat the building to a minimum level.

A Suffolk County Council spokesman urged parents to keep in touch with their children’s schools direct to get up-to-date information on whether they were likely to close.

“The majority of schools have set up a text service so that messages go to parents directly,” said the spokesman.

He said that schools were also able to add information to the Suffolk school closures page on the county council website themselves, giving details of closures, but not all schools would necessarily inform the council. Academies had the responsibility for organising closures themselves, the spokesman added.

“If a parent is concerned, they can also go to the school’s own website for information.”

Essex County Council is also advising parents to contact their child’s school directly if they think it may be closed because of the cold weather.

The Essex emergency school closures website is being updated as and when notifications are received, and closures planned for tomorrow will be displayed from 6pm onwards.