Parking Outside Schools
Topic outline
General
Parking
Inconsiderate and dangerous parking is increasingly causing problems around our schools, putting the safety of children and others at risk. Cars parking inconsiderately or on zigzag lines cause visibility issues for pedestrians of all ages who are crossing the road network to get to and from school.
Lancashire County Council is changing the way parking is enforced to make it more likely that drivers who park illegally will receive a penalty.
The county council is aware that some schools experience problems with parents parking illegally when dropping-off and picking up children and would be grateful if head teachers could take every opportunity to communicate this to parents in order to encourage responsible parking.Until now, parking enforcement officers have only been able to issue a penalty to a vehicle which is parked illegally, if it is still in place once they have finished writing out the penalty.
This meant that people who drove away while the penalty was in the process of being completed did not receive it as the penalty would be cancelled – however, a penalty was still issued by post if the enforcement officer had finished writing it out.A decision made this week by the county council's cabinet member for highways and transport, means that someone who drives off while receiving a penalty will still get their notice through the post, even if an enforcement officer has only started writing it out.
Adopting this practice is intended to provide a stronger deterrent to drivers who park illegally with the expectation that they can avoid a penalty by moving their vehicles as soon as they see enforcement being carried out.
This change does not affect the way parking is enforced in any other way. For example Civil Enforcement Officers will continue to observe a vehicle parked on double yellow lines for five minutes before issuing a penalty, and will continue to issue a penalty instantly to a vehicle parked illegally where no waiting and no stopping is allowed – such as on yellow zig-zag lines outside schools.
You can see full details of the decision here: http://council.lancashire.gov.uk/ieDecisionDetails.aspx?ID=7270Below are example letters that can be sent to Headteachers and Parents, on the topic of Parking Enforcement:
Leaflets
Parking Leaflet - Parking leaflet which can be printed off and distributed to parents.
The Parental Parking Pledge - Designed to address the on going daily problem of nuisance/dangerous parking in the vicinity of schools both at the start and the end of the school day. This document can be distributed by schools highlighting the parking issues and concerns of the school.
Colouring in Parking Leaflet - This leaflet can be used to let children colour in and give to their own parents/carers.
Newsletter Snippets
Newsletters are an excellent way of communicating important information, promoting the school ethos and celebrating achievements within the school to parents and other stakeholders.
This section will provide 'snippets' on topics such as road safety, sustainable travel and 20's, etc. which can be easily copied and pasted into your school newsletter/newspaper or other communications.
Newsletter Snippets - Each paragraph within this document is designed to be stand alone and can be easily copied and pasted into your school newsletters.
Polite Notices - If certain parents are repeatedly ignoring signs, consider a polite notice to target individuals
Create a Banner
Schools play a vital role within the community and they can show their support of the importance of keeping the area outside school a safer place, by encouraging the children to create a banner. This document provides all the information needed to create a school gate/railing banner.
Zig-Zag Parking Banner
A banner has been created to discourage drivers from stopping on the zig-zags outside school. If your school would like a banner for outside please email safertravelteam@lancashire.gov.uk
Checklist
This document provides a checklist for all the possible immediate solutions to parking issues outside schools.
Polite Notices
If certain parents are repeated ignoring signs, consider a polite notice to target individuals
Resources
The quiz and wordsearch are great way to test your knowledge of parking issues outside schools.
Stuck In A Jam
Parking around schools is a big problem for all schools across Lancashire. This project can be used in school assemblies with children and their parents focusing on parking in a safe and sensible manner.
The aim of this project is to have a positive effect on parent behaviours which should contribute to a safer environment for school children and residents around schools, ease congestion and parking and therefore contribute to a reduction in child casualties.
The project will aim to increase participation in walking to school, and provides steps on how to set up a Walking Bus. Schools are encouraged to recruit volunteers and set up a Walking Bus which will help to encourage active, healthy lifestyles, encourage modal shift and contribute to reducing congestion outside schools.
Access Stuck in a Jam and you will find animations and film clips on:
· Introduction for parents and children in an assembly or new parent intake
· Animation for class discussion or assemblies
· Stuck in a Jam song for whole school participation
· Final discussion with children
Car Sharing
Car sharing is an excellent way to share costs, cut stress, reduce parking problems and prevent traffic congestion. Travelling with others enables you to save up to £1000 a year on transport costs and even car-sharing once a week will save you money and reduce wear and tear on your car.
Shared Wheels is a website for people who live or work in Lancashire, developed in partnership by Blackpool Council, Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council, Lancashire County Council and Lancaster University.
The aim of the website is to maximise travel options whilst helping to reduce traffic congestion and pollution. There are over 38 million empty seats on the UK's roads every weekday, so by registering with Shared Wheels and sharing some of your car journeys you will be helping to make our roads cleaner, safer and help reduce congestion.
Shared wheels also allows a business such as a school to develop their own staff car share schemes. If you do not wish to operate or promote the car share scheme through shared wheels then why not set up your own school based scheme amongst the staff. Why not encourage staff to consider car sharing and assist in promoting a sustainable or environment arm of the school ethos.
Park and Stride
Park and Stride is a scheme ideal for families who live too far away from school to walk every day. It's a simple solution that allows pupils to walk for part of their journey. It works by finding a safe and legal place to park a little further from school and walking to their vehicle from there.