It was normal for children to walk to school until quite recently. It is certainly what happened when I was at primary school in the 1970s. Owning a car was not the norm in the part of Yorkshire where I grew up. The school run wasn’t a thing, just running to school.

In some of the more affluent parts of the country things were different - the school run was becoming a thing. Over time, driving to school became commonplace. By the time my daughter went to school in the 2000s, cars jammed the local streets. At both ends of the school day car doors were flung open for children to fly in and out.

For the last few years many councils in the UK have been taking measures to get children to walk to school again. The grave effects of traffic on air quality and the health and safety of children are generally accepted as unsustainable. It seems that we need to go full circle and revert to how things used to be.

School Streets is a council programme aimed at transforming the roads outside schools. Italy was the first to introduce school street schemes in 1989. Scotland was the first in the UK in 2015. Camden and Hackney were the first in London in 2017.

Why School Streets?

According to the School Streets website, school related traffic accounts for a quarter of cars on the road. This leads to an increase in collisions, road rage, illegal parking and traffic jams. In 2018 the Department of Transport reported that 14% of child fatalities on the UK’s roads happened between 7am and 9am and 3pm and 5pm. Traffic collisions fall by 43% during the school holidays at those times.  

The negative impact of the school run is in little doubt. The catalyst of the School Streets initiative is clear.  

The basic premise of a School Street. 

The streets around the school become a Pedestrian and Cycle Zone at set times before and after the school day. Vehicles cannot to enter this zone during these times, unless they have an exemption. After a trial period, usually of six to nine months, schools can become a permanent School Street.

The Pioneers of School Streets.

Hackney council in London has pioneered the School Streets initiative since 2017.

Councillor Mete Coban MBE is the  Cabinet member for Energy, Waste, Transport and Public Realm. He reports, “The benefits of school streets are clear - with big increases in walking and cycling to school and reduction in emissions outside schools. The latest six School Streets are part of our plans to rebuild a greener Hackney in the aftermath of the pandemic.” Mete continues, “As with all our plans to rebuild a greener Hackney, these School Streets are being implemented as trials, with residents able to have their say online and in writing once they’re implemented.”  

School Streets in action in Hackney.

William Patten Primary School has had a School Street since January 2020. Karen Law, the Headteacher, explains how it benefits the school community. “Before we had the School Street in place, the Leadership team used to stand outside the school at both ends of the day to check it was safe. We were especially concerned about older children who walked to school alone. Quite often we’d have to stand in the middle of the road to stop traffic. We were even offered marshalling training by the council.”

The school has two entrances – one on a busy road and one on a cul-de-sac. They are both School Streets. Karen describes some of the teething problems. “Though the cul-de-sac is small, van drivers and taxis were entering it to turn round during the prohibited times. We spoke to the council and they installed cameras, so that car users would incur fines. We’ve not had any problems since.”   

The parents at William Patten are great supporters of the initiative, with only very few unhappy that they couldn’t drive to school. “A group of parents got together and applied for the scheme to be extended to some of the side streets. They got it! This is really positive as it means that parking near school is much more difficult. Parents use alternative modes of transport such as cycling or walking.”

Karen considers the scheme a great success and urges all schools to apply. “The environment just outside the school is safer, quieter and cleaner. I’d say that 99% of the children now walk, cycle or scoot to school. Those few parents who were initially reluctant to give up driving found other ways of getting here. It makes arriving at school and going home a much more pleasant prospect.”

London Fields Primary School also has permanent status as a school street. Parents welcome this vociferously. One parent comments, “It has made the most enormous difference coming to school in the morning and afternoon. Before the programme started there was a huge amount of traffic. There was also the hazard of trying to cross the road – they’re busy junctions.” 

Another parent echoes this, “The school’s just so much better. The best thing about the School Streets programme is the dramatic decrease in polluting traffic outside the school gates. I find it’s a lot safer too. I can have my little two year old walking beside me along the road. We can have conversations that we couldn’t have before because of the traffic noise.”

Hackney Council has launched a guide to support councils across the country. The Hackney School Streets Toolkit  goes step-by-step through the process.

Further support for School streets.

Kay Rowe Nursery School in the London Borough of Newham has welcomed having a school street since May 2021. Sarah Porter, the Headteacher, says, “There were lots of delays due to Covid – it kept getting pushed back. Newham was very supportive though, and keen to get it done.”

Sarah explains how the school did a lot of preparatory work with families. “Most were really encouraging, but there were a few parents who weren’t very happy. They complained about getting fines or having to walk from where they had parked.”

In terms of the local residents, no complaints were made to the school, but the council did receive some. Sarah continues, “We have an undertaker at the end of the road and a doctor’s surgery - neither were keen, so this was a bit difficult. Some residents also complained about deliveries.”

On the whole, the staff are in favour of School Streets. In some cases, exemptions have been granted. “We asked for exemptions for two members of staff who needed it. However, there is a loophole. If members of staff had bought themselves a business parking permit they could then apply for an exemption. This has been a bit tricky as they shouldn’t get a business permit for driving to and from school.”

Kay Rowe would like to make more of their reclaimed street. Having planters or a pocket park by the zig-zag lines would be a start, but lack of funding is currently a problem.

Sarah deems the scheme a success for Kay Rowe. “This year most parents have taken it in their stride to come to school on foot or by scooter – we have never had so many scooters parked at school!” However, Sarah has one concern. “There’s still a number of cars driving up and down. Local residents’ permissions, including those on neighbouring streets, make this possible. This is an issue I need to go back to Newham with.”

An unconvinced voice

The majority of parents and school leaders I spoke with praised the School Streets initiative and considered it a success. As might be expected, this was not unanimous. Jali, a parent from one of the primary schools in Waltham Forest, is a supporter. She agrees that the school drop off and pick up is now a very different experience. “Walking to school and crossing the roads is easier. There are fewer cars idling near the school gates which I guess has probably improved air quality”.

Having said that, Jali does not think that the scheme is an unalloyed success. “There are still loads of parents driving to school. Now they just park on different roads. If the aim of the programme is to get those who drive to school to walk instead, I’d say it has failed.”

Finally…

We need to reduce traffic emissions. We need to make streets safer for children. We need to reclaim the street from traffic. The School Streets initiative is taking this on board  and clearly making a difference. Of course, there is further work to be done and loopholes to be tackled, as with any new programme.

It is not possible to revert to how things were in a small Yorkshire town in the 1970s, but we can do something. The School Streets programme demonstrates this.

Further Information:

School Streets - all the info you need