Schools throughout West Dunbartonshire will close their doors after final classes on Friday - and may not reopen until after the summer holidays.
The announcement came from First Minister Nicola Sturgeon this afternoon, with the number of cases of coronavirus in the country continuing to rise.
Ms Sturgeon said: "It is now inevitable that we will be closing schools and nurseries.
“Schools and nurseries will close at the end of this week and I wanted to give parents notice of that now.
“There are two key drivers of that view. One is science, they are telling us to close schools.
“The second is on the ground, as people are being told to self-isolate, more and more schools are reaching a point that they have lost too many staff to continue as normal.
“We will address tomorrow the plans going forward
“We must not cut adrift vulnerable pupils.
“Also we will address what this means for pupils who were due to sit exams.
“We must make sure key workers can keep working otherwise lives are on the line.
“There will be questions as to when these schools will reopen, the clearest guidance I can give now is that people should not assume schools and nurseries will reopen after the Easter holidays.
“At this stage I can not promise they will reopen before the Summer holidays."
In a statement published on their Facebook page, West Dunbartonshire Council said: "We have been planning for this for a number of weeks and have been working closely with our headteachers to ensure learning can continue in these circumstances.
"We have developed a range of online resources including Google classroom; and will be providing services where needed and have also prepared learning packs.
"Our planning has also taken into consideration the fact that so many in our community rely on our education facilities for more than learning, including our most vulnerable families.
"The detail of the closure will be announced tomorrow (Thursday March 19) by the Education Secretary and we will be in a position to provide information to all of our parents and carers following this - including guidance for our pupils due to sit SQA exams this year."
The news will affect pupils right throughout Dumbarton and the Vale of Leven, whilst parents and guardians will be left with the challenge of arranging childcare for a period that could stretch for more than five months.
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