Severe snow disrupts schools and transport across Scotland’s north

Shiva K Dhakal
National Press Corporation(NPC)
United Kingdom—Hundreds of schools across northern Scotland will remain closed on Monday after new amber weather warnings for snow and strong winds came into force overnight.

The Met Office said a further 5–10cm of snow is expected across large parts of the north east, the Highlands and the Northern Isles, with some mainland locations potentially seeing accumulations of up to 20–30cm.

The return to school following the holiday break has been delayed in Aberdeenshire, Shetland and Orkney, while schools in Aberdeen will reopen later than usual. Education authorities said conditions remained too uncertain to ensure safe travel for pupils and staff.

Snowfall over recent days has already created hazardous driving conditions, with numerous reports of vehicles becoming stranded. Highland Council said roads in Easter Ross, Sutherland and Caithness were particularly challenging and urged people to travel only if absolutely necessary.

Aberdeenshire Council said more than 100 contractor and farmer-operated snowploughs were working to clear routes, though some parts of the road network remained impassable. Difficult conditions were also reported on the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route.

Transport disruption has been widespread. Network Rail said snowplough trains had been deployed, encountering drifts of up to 1.2m near Laurencekirk. ScotRail confirmed several routes, including Aberdeen–Inverness and Inverness–Wick, would not fully resume until Monday afternoon.

All Sunday flights in and out of Sumburgh Airport were cancelled, while some services from Aberdeen were also affected. Airlines urged passengers to check flight status before travelling.

Emergency services and voluntary groups have been under sustained pressure. Cotag, a volunteer 4×4 response team in the north east, said it had assisted the NHS more than 200 times since the start of the year, including helping stranded ambulances and transporting medical staff and patients.

Transport Secretary Fiona Hyslop said motorists should ensure vehicles were winter-ready and carry emergency supplies. Police Scotland urged people to reconsider non-essential journeys, warning that road closures were implemented for public safety.

Amber warnings remain in place until Monday morning, with additional yellow warnings for snow and ice covering central and eastern Scotland into Tuesday.