• Fri. Mar 29th, 2024

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First school campaigns against unsafe parking

Screen Shot 2015-11-30 at 15.13.34Pupils and teachers of Archibald First School in Gosforth have joined forces with Northumbrian Roads to raise awareness of the need for safe and considerate parking during the school run.

As changes are made to the roads across Gosforth, the school has embarked on the campaign to raise awareness of the daily struggle it encounters with inconsiderate and dangerous parking outside and around the school on Archibald Street, following mounting concerns by staff and parents.

Head teacher Julia Bayes is leading the campaign, regularly wearing a high-vis vest to patrol the street in the mornings. She said: “We want to try and spread the message of positive parking to try and keep the streets near the school as safe as possible.

“People parking on zigzag lines, pavements and in front of school entrances when dropping off and picking up youngsters is a problem we face daily. It results in children being forced to walk on the road just to get past which is potentially hazardous.

“It gets very busy along Archibald Street and the surrounding narrow lanes, with some people parking illegally, dangerously or inconsiderately rather than park slightly further away and walk in.

“Thankfully the vast majority of our parents do park appropriately, but it only takes one or two to lead to potential problems.”

Northumbrian Roads Ltd has sponsored two large banners across the school’s railings and a bill board stand for the pavement highlighting the dangers of unsafe parking.

Joanne McCreedy Office Manager from Northumbrian Roads said: “We are always keen to support and engage with local community projects such as this.

“Being a highway maintenance contractor, we sometimes encounter inconsiderate parking as a barrier to progressing with our own works and pedestrian safety, particularly around schools which can often prove difficult.

“We hope the placing of these signs will make a difference here, keep the children safer and make people think twice about just parking anywhere.”

Although statistically children injured on roads is decreasing thanks to greater campaigning, AXA RoadSafe report still revealed nearly 33,000 children had been killed or seriously injured on Britain’s roads in the last 10 years.

Mrs Bayes added: “The children have been really supportive of the campaign as we have been able to get them involved and teach them about road safety – making sure they are safe whilst crossing and being around busy roads.”

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By admin