Schools right across England have decided to let pupils start school a little later following the Euro 2020 final.
With Gareth’s Southgate’s Three Lions squad having triumphantly defeated Denmark 2-1 to advance to the final of European football’s flagship tournament, all eyes of all ages are set to be on Wembley Stadium on Sunday.
This could truly be a moment remembered history.
The match is set to kick off at 8pm, and it’s thought that play could be taken all the way up to 11:15pm at the latest should it go to extra time and penalties – and that’s before the celebrations commence.
Understandably, for many of the youngest football fans, this could be quite the late night.
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So it’s a good job that local schools in the North West and across the country have decided to make things a little easier by allowing pupils staying up to watch the match come into school later the next morning.
Headteachers have been offering kids the optional start time of 10.30am, with some adding that they would rather have a late start “than an absence”.
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Headteachers have been offering kids the optional start time of 10.30am / Credit: UEFA Euro 2020 / England
Pupils at Alexandra Park Primary School in Edgeley, Stockport are just one of the local institutions that have been told they can head into school at 10.30am on Monday to allow them to can properly enjoy Sunday night’s match.
Headteacher Phil Brooke said it’s been a tough year for pupils, parents and teachers, adding: “My thinking is just that I want the children to have a great night and not have to worry about school in the morning,”
“If they can have a fantastic memory of the night, that’s the important thing,” he told the MEN.
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Coates Lane Primary School in Barnoldswick, Lancashire is also giving parents the option to let kids come in at 10.30am, announcing on Facebook that: “We would rather have children rested and in school ready to learn rather than absent all day or grumpy.”
Gisburn Road Community Primary School, also in Barnoldswick, has too given the green light for a lie-in, and thanked a now-viral decision by Rossmere Primary School in Hartlepool for the idea.
In a statement posted to Facebook, Rossmere Primary School told parents the Euro 2020 final was one of “national pride” and the “job of schools is to give children the best experiences possible”, adding: “It’s 55 years since England reached a major football final so let them watch, talk about the importance of the National Anthem, talk about pride and resilience and possibly disappointment.
The school will still open at 8.40am on Monday morning – but those arriving up to 10.30am will not be marked as late or miss lessons.
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It is expected that many other schools across the country will adopt a similar approach.
The decision taken by such schools to allow pupils to come in at a later time on Monday morning comes after an online petition calling for an extra Bank Holiday in the event that England clinch the Euro 2020 victory has seen over 100,000 people put their names to it.
When asked about the prospect yesterday, Prime Minister Boris Johnson ruled out the idea saying: “I think that would be tempting fate – let’s see what happens.”
He urged the nation to support the Three Lions “enthusiastically, but in a responsible way”.
Many businesses have also offered workers a late start or the whole day off, so that football fans can nurse their hangovers – with the Trades Union Congress (TUC) saying that the game would be a “historic moment” for the country.
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“Bosses should talk to their staff about flexible working arrangements ahead of Monday morning – perhaps allowing them to start later and claim back their time afterwards.” said Frances O’Grady, the TUC’s General Secretary.
“Many of them will want to watch the match, and they should be able to – either at work or by finishing early and making up the time,” she concluded.
Oasis finally confirm ‘private ballot’ ticket information for reunion tour
Daisy Jackson
Oasis have just announced more information about how tickets will be sold through a ‘private ballot’ for their extra reunion tour dates.
The group added two additional shows at Wembley Stadium after their initial 17 gigs across London, Manchester, Dublin, Edinburgh and Cardiff generated huge demand and sold out in a day.
Oasis and Ticketmaster came under fire though for the use of dynamic pricing, which saw ticket prices shoot up by hundreds of pounds by the time people made it through the online queues.
For these additional reunion tour dates at Wembley, ticket sales will look a little different.
They’ll be using a ‘private ballot’, which will give first dibs to those who missed out on the first ticket sale.
You’ll only be invited to register for the sale if you signed into your Ticketmaster account on Saturday 31 August, and joined a queue for a specific show.
And you’ll only receive an invitation if you DIDN’T manage to bag tickets the first time round.
THEN you’ll be able to register for the actual ballot, which still doesn’t guarantee you a ticket but does at least get you into a (hopefully less lengthy) queue.
“Invitations to enter the private ballot will be sent overnight tonight (Saturday) to eligible fans we have been able to identify.
“If you signed into your Ticketmaster UK account on Saturday, 31st August, and were able to join a queue for a specific show, but didn’t get a ticket-then you may be eligible to take part and will receive an email on how to register for the ballot.
“Keep an eye on the inbox associated with your Ticketmaster account, and don’t forget to check your junkmail.
“Once successfully registered, you will be entered into the ballot for a code for access to the final Wembley on sale.
“Due to the demand for the shows and to avoid last week’s long queues, codes will be strictly limited. Entry to the ballot does not guarantee you will receive a code.
“The ballot is only open to invited fans. You must register with the email to which your invitation was sent and which is registered with your Ticketmaster account.
“All other entries will be discounted. If you do not receive an email then unfortunately you will not be eligible for the ballot.
“You will be automatically discounted from the ballot, even if you go through the registration process.”
Featured image: Simon Emmett
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Manchester Airport named UK’s worst in annual Which? survey for third year running
Emily Sergeant
Manchester Airport has officially been declared the worst airport in the UK, according to a new survey by Which?… yet again.
The summer travel season may be drawing to a close now, with hundreds of flights having taken off and landed in our region over the last couple of months, but for any Greater Manchester holidaymakers who are still yet to jet off, an annual ranking by consumer choice group Which? has proved to be pretty grim reading.
That’s because several terminals at the UK’s third largest airport have found themselves at the bottom of the list in Which? latest findings.
Manchester Airport has hit back at the survey and defended itself, saying its own passenger surveys suggest people are “much more positive” about the airport, adding that it was “proud to give people in all parts of the North easy and affordable access to nearly 200 different destinations across the world”.
For its annual survey, Which? spoke to nearly 7,000 passengers to gather feedback about their experiences of flying from UK airports over the last 12 months, and asked them to score the airports across 11 categories.
Manchester Airport has been named the worst in the UK for the third year running / Credit: The Manc Group
Some of these categories including seating, staff, toilets, and of course, the queues we all dread at check in, bag drop, passport control, and security.
And just like in both 2022 and again in 2023, it was Manchester Airport Terminal 3 that ranked right at the bottom, receiving the lowest customer satisfaction score of 37%.
Manchester Terminal 1 ranked one place above that with a score of 40%, while Manchester Terminal 2 was a little further up the the list with a score of 51%, and just saw Luton Airport, London Stansted, and Belfast International Airport sandwiched in between it.
According to Which?, some of the complaints it received about Manchester Airport from passengers who responded to the survey this year was that older people struggled with long walks due to travelators being broken since 2021, difficulties with finding a seat, and “horrendous” queues with people apparently being “corralled like cattle”.
As mentioned though, Manchester Airport has slammed Which?’s findings in a formal statement.
The UK’s third largest airport has hit back at the survey results and defended itself / Credit:
Describing the survey as “disappointing to see”, Manchester Airport’s statement reads: “We understand not every experience is perfect and want all passengers to feel able to raise their concerns directly with us. That is why we speak to them on a daily basis, surveying hundreds of people a month to get in-the-moment feedback from a full range of perspectives.
“That is in stark contrast to Which?, which conducted a tiny and unrepresentative survey of its members six months ago, asking them to recollect airport experiences that could have been as far back in time as April 2023.
“Which? fully understands that its readers form a narrow group of passengers whose views cannot in any way be taken to represent those of the travelling public at large, but chooses to promote its survey findings as if they do.”
Manchester Airport says it’s disappointing see Which? “chase cheap headlines” with its “sensational and over-simplified characterisation of airports” and the different roles they play, adding: “To make matters worse, it has printed inaccurate statements about our facilities and security waiting times that paint a more negative picture than reality.