Safety crackdown on the school run

SAFETY first . . . PCSO Matthew Birch hands out safety advice to pupils, from left, Khizer Hafiz, Asfand Ali, Marina Khan and Maria Hussain

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PARENTS who break basic road-safety laws on the school run will be punished as a hard-hitting police campaign goes borough-wide.

A week-long pilot project by West Oldham Neighbourhood Policing Team at Alexandra Park School in Brook Lane has been a huge success.

Officers patrolled the streets to hand out safety advice to youngsters and make sure parents were up to date with the law.

Four £60 fixed-penalty notices were handed out to parents who failed to ensure their children were wearing seatbelts or who didn’t have the correct booster seats in place.

Police also urged parents to avoid parking directly outside the school gates in a bid to cut congestion and make it safer for pupils to cross.

The pilot will now be followed up with surprise visits by officers to make sure the rules are being obeyed.

Officers have applied to Oldham Council for zig-zag markings outside the school which ban parking between certain times meaning motorists risk a fine and points on their licence if they break the rules.

PC Nathan McLean said: “Through this initiative we have been raising awareness among parents and children about basic road safety and encouraging drivers to find a suitable place to park and walk their children into school.

“It is particularly important at this time of year as the dark mornings and evenings start to roll in as it will be getting dark when children are walking home making them more vulnerable.

“When we started the project at the beginning of the week, parents looked a bit shocked but by the end they were complying with the rules and the children have really enjoyed learning the Green Cross Code.

“If you educate parents about being more aware when driving close to schools and you educate children about how to cross the road safely you are on to a winner and the children will take these messages with them as they grow up.

“When children come out of school and see mum or dad standing across the road, the last thing on their mind will be checking for traffic so we are trying to drill the road-safety message into their heads.

“We have also been urging parents to consider walking to school instead of driving in a bid to make pupils safer and healthier at the same time.”

A similar project will be held at Broadfield School in Hathershaw in November and PC Nathan McLean hopes it will be rolled out borough-wide.