Parents and carers in County Durham are being reminded of the importance of parking safely when dropping children off at school.
As part of Brake’s national Road Safety Week 2022, the County Durham and Darlington Casualty Reduction Partnership, which includes representatives from Durham County Council, Durham Constabulary and County Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue Service, has launched the Safer Parking campaign.
Designed to advise on the dangers that inconsiderate parking could cause, a toolkit developed by the council’s road safety team will be issued to schools highlighting the impact that it can have on the emergency services, the environment, and the community.
It also encourages parents and carers to consider taking active and sustainable journeys to school instead, whether that be through walking or cycling.
The campaign was launched at Vane Road Primary School, Newton Aycliffe and will be rolled out to all schools across the county.
Headteacher Kieran Pavey said: “The safety of our children is paramount and whilst we put everything in place to keep children safe in school, it is often more challenging to do so outside the school gates.
“This is especially true when it comes to traffic management around school. Schools were traditionally placed in communities well before most parents had cars and so traffic circulation was never considered at the point of location.
“The knock-on effect of this is that in 2022, school drop off and pick up times see congestion around the school gates which can be dangerous for our children.”
Mr Pavey added: “Raising awareness of the issues, through initiatives like this, will help everyone consider more what part they can play in making things safer for children.
“It is great that this joint event between the council, police and school will put consideration of traffic management and behaviour back in the forefront of everyone’s minds.”
Cllr Elizabeth Scott, Durham County Council’s cabinet member for economy and partnerships, said: “Inconsiderate and inappropriate parking outside of school gates can be very frustrating for schools such as Vane Road primary as well as for the local community.
“We want to focus on changing behaviour through education and hope that the important information shared in these resources, will be taken on board by parents and carers when dropping their children off at school.”