Several different schools in Middlesbrough will close early for the funeral of one of the seven men who died in the A66 crash.

Theo Rae, 17, was among five people travelling in a Volkswagen Passat which went the wrong way along the A66 near Middlesbrough in the early hours of August 22.

The car collided with a Cleveland Police vehicle, killing Rae and the other four occupants, as well as police officers PC Matthew Blades, 37, and PC Tom Clough, 38.

Rae’s funeral will take place at Teesside Crematorium in Acklam on Monday afternoon, with the procession expected to travel through parts of Middlesbrough before arriving at St Bede’s Chapel on Acklam Road.

A number of schools have decided to close early because of the expected traffic disruption.

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Outwood Academy Acklam finished at 12.15pm, while Newham Bridge Primary School closed at 1pm.

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Meanwhile, Acklam Whin Primary School and Green Lane School in Acklam finished at 1.15pm.

Newham Bridge Primary told parents the early closure would ‘ensure safe transit home for all our families’.

Outwood Academy Acklam said its decision followed ‘careful consideration of the potential impact on pupils, staff and families travelling to and from the school’.

Middlesbrough Council said schools had made their own decisions based on the possibility of ‘localised traffic disruption leading to delays later in the afternoon’.

Cleveland Police said the closures had not been made on its recommendation, but officers were liaising with organisations in the area ahead of the funeral.

Superintendent John Wrintmore said there would be a ‘proportionate visible police presence’ in the affected areas to ensure public safety.

Ladgate Lane, Ormesby Road, Cargo Fleet Lane and Acklam Road are all expected to be affected by the funeral procession.

Schools in neighbouring South Bank also closed early on Friday for the funeral of 23-year-old Jakub Matusiak, another victim of the crash.

Police said that funeral ‘passed without issue’ and caused ‘very minimal traffic disruption’.

The decision to close schools early has already sparked a political row.

Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch criticised the closures, describing it as ‘obscene’ that schools were closing again in the area.

She said: ‘It was bad enough that schools closed early last week but it is completely unfathomable that the Labour government has not stopped it happening again this week.’

But Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland MP Luke Myer hit back, accusing Badenoch of trying to ‘score political points’ while the community deals with the tragedy.

Following the crash, several people have since been arrested as part of a wider police investigation into organised crime. The investigation is ongoing.


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