SWINDON was gripped by heavy snowfall yesterday with many services grinding to a halt.

More than 140 schools around the county were closed, roads were blocked and buses were stranded in the street.

But some people enjoyed the 'snow day' taking to slopes on their sledges.

Swindon Borough Council had many of its services disrupted or cancelled due to the weather.

Bin collections were stopped as it became clear that the weather and roads would worsen. Education and social care transport was cancelled due to the snow, which included transport to adult day care centres.

The A419 northbound carriageway was shut by police for hours after a lorry became stranded in the thick snow.

Darren Jackson said : “I have been stuck for 40 minutes in the same place.”

Union Row in Old Town was described as “impassable” by police.

And Victoria Road and Kingshill Road were closed for most of the day due to vehicles being unable to climb the steep inclines.

Bus services were heavily disrupted and both Stagecoach and Swindon’s Bus Company cancelling or limiting routes as drivers struggled with the atrocious road conditions.

The household waste recycling centre had to close early and housing services were prioritising emergency heating calls, which the council said could impact non-urgent maintenance work.

In a statement the council said: “All waste and recycling collections have been suspended due to the bad weather so please take your bins back in where safe to do so. Any waste not collected should be re-presented on Monday when normal service will be resumed, weather permitting.

“Waste re-presented will be collected as soon as possible over the course of next week so please leave your waste out until it is collected.”

The council activated the severe weather emergency protocol which is set up during extremely cold weather, when temperatures falls to 0C or lower for three consecutive days.

It said: “This means we will accommodate anyone who presents themselves as homeless and will use additional accommodation such as B&Bs and hotels if needed.

“Individuals will make their own decision about whether to accept an offer of shelter based on their individual circumstances.”

Parking attendants gave drivers a day off as Swindon and Wiltshire Council confirmed that any cars left in council run car parks overnight would not receive a ticket if left uncollected.

But police urged people not to take to the roads if they could avoid it. South Swindon Police said: “We have attended numerous RTCs and trapped vehicles as people are choosing to risk the weather conditions.

“As well as a thick blanket of snow with more falling on top of it, we have stretches of black ice.

“Driving in these conditions can be extremely dangerous and potentially fatal.”

One driver who got stuck car messaged the Adver to say thanks to people who went to help him.

Carl Gilbert said: “My car was stuck, the people of Swindon ran to my aid. They pushed the car and helped stopped an accident happening.

“I want to send a huge thank you out to the people of Swindon for helping me out.”

Swindon Borough Council was praised for its response to gritting and clearing the roads, with more than 200 miles of roads serviced.

On Twitter, Alex Chutter said: “I have to say we are often quick to criticise our local authorities but Swindon council has impressively cleared a lot of the roads around Swindon after the snowfall. Resulting in Swindon's Bus Co services slowly but surely returning to normal.”

The snow brought joy to youngsters who were able to make the most of an early start to the weekend.

They made snowmen and went sledging at favoured spots around the town, including off Akers Way.

But is also prompted a warning from Wiltshire Fire Service to avoid waterways and ponds.

Area Manager Dave Graham said: “From the bank, ice can look firm enough to take your weight, and it can even feel safe when you first venture out, but it takes just a second for the ice to crack and suddenly you’re submerged in freezing cold water. People have died after going out on frozen lakes, and we don’t want that to happen in Wiltshire. Even the weight of a dog can be enough to break the ice, so always keep your pets on a lead.”

People were advised to call 999 immediately if they did see anyone in trouble.