October 2004

Neville’s Cross Primary School encouraged parents to ‘Park and Stride’ on their journey to school and joined millions of other school children from countries around the world taking part in ‘International Walk to School Week’. The annual event, which is attracting more and more countries worldwide, aims to promote regular physical activity, safer communities and create a cleaner environment.

During the development of their School Travel Plan the Working Group at Neville’s Cross Primary School decided to address the issue of traffic congestion outside the school gates. The group identified three public houses in the local area, the Duke of Wellington, The Stonebridge and the Pot and Glass. The group decided that they would seek permission to use the car parks and, once permission was granted, parents would be encouraged to park their vehicles in the car park. Parental volunteers would then escort the children on a walking bus for the remainder of the journey.

Parent volunteers for each of the three walking buses were found, training was given and the routes were risk assessment by the Road Safety Team. Everyone donned their yellow tabards in preparation for the launch during International Walk to School Week. On the launch day the streets came alive with the sound of footsteps as pupils and parents put their best foot forward and made their way to school the healthy way arriving awake and ready to start their lessons.

The success of the International Walk to School Week launch has resulted in one of the walking buses operating regularly from the Pot and Glass Public House car park and volunteers are being sought to make the other two walking buses a regular sight in the Neville’s Cross area.

It was not only the children of Neville’s Cross Primary School who thoroughly enjoyed the experience of walking to school. Pupils from Bullion Lane Primary School and Newker Primary School joined together to create a huge walking bus. Accompanied by County Councillor Brian Ebbatson together with their head teachers, teaching staff and a host of parents they left the Whitehills Public House car park and walked the route along Waldrdge Way on their journey to their respective schools.

Each of the schools were developing their own School Travel Plans and as well as the engineering measures implemented to make the route to school safer, the schools had been using their specially prepared ‘Walk to School’ resource packs filled with ideas and activities to engage with their pupils to encourage them to develop a healthy lifestyle at an early stage.

More information on International Walk To School Campaign.

The Walk To School Campaigns