Homes remain without gas for third day

Some homes in Surrey remain without gas for a third day after water leaked into a gas network.
Gas supplier SGN said a total of 340 homes in the Goldsworth Road area of Woking were affected by damage on Sunday.
More than 24,000 litres of water had been pumped out of the gas network as of 21:00 GMT on Monday, SGN said.
The exact circumstances of how the water entered SGN infrastructure remains under investigation.
One local resident said she and her children did not each much on Monday as she was unable to use her cooker.
"It's frustrating. The kids want a warm meal and I can't provide that to them," she told BBC Radio Surrey.
"The house is cold and we have to huddle upstairs and use small heaters, which took up a lot of electricity."
Another resident added: "It's been freezing and highly inconvenient.
"The gas company told me they are working on it, that's all they can do. It's just hard work, it's half-term as well and every body's at home."
A customer service station has been set up at Woking Railway Athletic Club, which will be open until 21:00.
"If you're elderly, disabled, chronically sick or have young children, you can obtain portable electrical appliances for cooking and heating," an SGN spokesperson said.
Water supplier Affinity Water said it had carried emergency repairs to the damaged water main.
"While SGN is leading the restoration of gas services, we remain fully committed to assisting them and supporting the local community throughout the process," an Affinity Water spokesperson added.
Follow BBC Surrey on Facebook, on X. Send your story ideas to southeasttoday@bbc.co.uk or WhatsApp us on 08081 002250.
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Hamilton Spectator

7 hours ago

• Hamilton Spectator

Decoding your kid's report card: What it says and what it really means

Sarah Jane had just finished writing report cards for her Grade 7 students when she called her principal and declared she was done with teaching. 'It was the tipping point,' says the Niagara-area teacher who retired in 2021, marking the end of a 35-year career. 'I thought I just don't want to do another set of report cards and be all stressed out. It's so much work. 'I loved the kids, and I loved teaching. But I felt like report cards are too sugar-coated and sometimes even dishonest because we always have to say what the child does well … You want to find a child's strength, but we're always trying to phrase everything so positively that I think parents don't always know where their child is' academically. Jane is the creator of Ontario Report Card Comments , a Facebook group with nearly 15,000 members where educators share tips and support to get through one of the most nuanced, high-stakes and emotionally charged tasks facing teachers. Report card flashback: What teachers said to a future Nobel prize winner, a prolific author and a future premier The results of which are imminent: final report cards are about to land in the hands of students across the province. For families, it's a nerve-wracking moment that can bring great pride or crushing disappointment. Reviewing anyone's performance can be stressful and intimidating, says Brampton high school teacher Jason Bradshaw, but 'imagine speaking of somebody's child, that takes it to another level. People are going to be all the more emotionally invested. So teachers have a responsibility to be constructive and transparent.' But report cards don't always successfully reflect that. Vague, standardized language and a lack of personalization can leave families unsure of how their child is progressing. 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Learning skills rely on something else entirely — observation, interpretation and a fair amount of subjectivity. All children in Ontario grades 1 to 12 are evaluated on six competencies: responsibility, organization, independent work, collaboration, initiative and self-regulation. 'You really have to know the child and be able to back up anything you say with proof,' says Jane, who found evaluating these skills the most challenging and time-consuming part of assessment duties, likening it to having to write three separate essays on each student — one for every report card. Simone agrees it can be tedious. 'You don't want to be repetitive, and every child is their own and you want to speak to that child's individuality, but how many times can you say, 'Your desk is messy?' ' The subjectivity required also makes them possibly problematic. 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Business Insider

a day ago

• Business Insider

I moved 22 hours away to start a new job. A couple I met by chance took me in, and now they're like family to me.

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