School run goes crazy

7:14am Monday 22nd October 2007

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By David Paine »

PARENTS are parking outside a primary school in a Worcestershire village an hour before it finishes - so they can get a prime spot.

Community Support Officers are now having to watch parents park their cars during the morning drop-off and afternoon pick-up at Kempsey Primary School.

The practice is to continue indefinitely.

People living nearby fear for the safety of the 265 pupils at the school in Ellsdon because parents are parking on pavements and across residents' driveways in a bid to get as close to the school as possible.

Parish councillor Pam Gerrard said the school bus regularly struggles to get past the traffic and added that she recently saw an offroad vehicle parked outside the school gates with all its wheels on the pavement.

"The only way to get around it was to either walk in the road or across somebody's garden and that to me is not on," she said. "It is very inconsiderate."

Mrs Gerrard, of Oakfield Drive, said children's lives are at risk.

"It's quite a bad place when they leave," she said. "The other day there was a child trying to cross the road and a car was reversing just outside the school."

Ann Hart, another parish councillor who has lived near the school for 40 years, said she too has witnessed many near misses in the past and added the parking problem has been an ongoing issue.

Nobody from the school wanted to comment, but Mrs Gerrard said letters are sent out to parents about the problem on a regular basis. She also said people have got permission to use the Talbot pub's car park off the A38 but not many do.

Mrs Hart said whenever officers are outside the school people park elsewhere for a few days but they always come back.

"It's just a nightmare," she said. "The police have even booked people which works for a bit but people get complacent and they come back. You can't expect the police to be here everyday though."

A police spokeswoman said officers would indefinitely patrol the area whenever possible.

"We would urge parents using cars for the school run to adhere to the restrictions in place at all times and spare some consideration for other road users and residents living in the area," she said. "There are safer areas to park close-by, even if it means a short walk to the school."

* Are you a parent who parks close to the school? Do you know about another school with parking problems? If so call our newsdesk on 01905 742244 or e-mail to wenedit@worcesternews.co.uk. You can also send a picture to wenphoto@midlands. newsquest.co.uk