Sustainable Warwickshire

A pilot road safety scheme from Warwickshire County Council at Eastlands Primary School in Rugby has been hailed a success in making the local street safer for the school and wider community during the busy drop off and collection times.

The pilot School Streets scheme, which is ongoing at Eastlands Primary School in the Hillmorton area of Rugby, includes a zone where non-residential traffic from outside the School Street area are restricted from entering the zone.

During the pilot scheme, Lansdowne Place, the residential road leading to the school, is closed to all non-residential traffic during term time, Monday-Friday from 8:15-9:15am and 2:30-3:30pm. Traffic signs at the entrance to the School Street zone inform drivers of the time that these restrictions operate.

An increasing number of School Streets can be found across the UK with evidence suggesting they are making the school journey safer and improving air quality. They have been very popular with residents, parents, children and schools alike and Eastlands Primary School in Rugby is the first to be implemented in Warwickshire.

Warwickshire County Council is delighted with the response from residents and the school community to the pilot at Eastlands Primary School. At drop off and pick up, Lansdowne Place has been transformed from a car dominated space to a far safer and calmer environment with more parents and children using active travel – walking, cycling and scooting – for all (or part) of their journey to school. The Council will continue to monitor the pilot scheme and will report its findings in the near future.

Cllr Jan Matecki, Warwickshire County Council Portfolio Holder for Transport and Planning said: “We’re delighted to have been able to support Eastlands School with the implementation of The School Streets pilot. It’s such a simple concept that is already delivering a wide range of important benefits to the school community, local residents and the wider environment.

“I would like to take this opportunity to thank Mrs Edwards at Eastlands Primary School for agreeing to take part in Warwickshire’s very first School Streets Scheme and the whole community who have made this pilot scheme a success so far.” 

Mrs Suki Edwards, Head Teacher at Eastlands Primary School, said: “School Streets has transformed the area immediately around the school gates at the start and end of each school day.

“We are seeing children now walking the last five or ten minutes to school each morning which sets them up for the day.

“As there is no congestion, we clearly have improved safety for all children, families and neighbours. In time, we hope to see further improvement in air quality.

“I have had many parents share how pleased they are with the project and its impact on safety around the school gate at the busiest times.”

Find out more about school streets in Warwickshire: https://www.warwickshire.gov.uk/schoolstreets 

More details about the national school streets initiative can be found here:  http://schoolstreets.org.uk/

Find out more about Road Safety in Warwickshire: https://warksroadsafety.org/

Find out more about Eastlands Primary School: https://www.eastlandsprimaryschool.co.uk/