Factors that could lead to school closures in Bolton

Greater Manchester has now introduced more than 50 ‘school routes’, which restrict traffic outside schools at drop-off and pick-up times, with an ambition to reach 100 by the May 2028 mayoral election.

A number of schools in Bolton are taking part in the scheme, with positive feedback from parents and pupils.

But Dame Sarah Storey, Greater Manchester’s Active Travel Commissioner, says there cannot be a “one size fits all” approach to deciding where the measures should go next.

She said residential streets are among those likely to be considered first, particularly where school traffic causes problems for the wider community.

Dame Sarah said: “Residential areas are probably the ones you target first because people live in these places and residents are also the people who complain about school traffic.

School routes are more than 50 in Greater Manchester (Image: NQ)

“‘Everybody’s blocking my driveway, I can’t get to work.’ Those are the places that we tend to start with, because they are the ones that affect more people, as well as the people who come to school.

Other factors can make a conventional school route impractical, but also a school located on a bus route or major road.

Rather than shutting down these schools altogether, Dame Sarah said the authorities could look for different solutions, including using a different school entrance.

(Image: NQ)

She said: “You can’t say one size fits all, and that’s ultimately why they have to be done on a case-by-case basis.

“They have to be done really carefully in consultation with the residents who live around them, with the needs of the school.”

The push comes as Greater Manchester passes the 50-school-street milestone, with schemes now operating in all 10 boroughs and benefiting more than 20,000 pupils.

An example is Peel Hall Primary School in Little Hulton, where Greencourt Drive is under restrictions monitored by an ANPR camera.

Headteacher Stephen Lawler-Smith said dangerous driving outside the school was already on his radar when he took over.

Stephen Lawler-Smith, Headmaster (Image: NQ)

He said: “We had people coming late, turning around, driving too fast, going around the corner, not watching the kids go over. It was just a bit of a nightmare really.

“It was right on my radar. It was unpleasant and it was dangerous for kids and parents walking to school.”

The scheme began with a “soft launch” in February before implementation followed, giving families time to adjust.

Mr Lawler-Smith says more children are now cycling to school and estimates around 95 per cent of families support the changes, although some drivers will now have to park further away.

He added: “The residents have always been all on board. The relationship between the residents and the school has improved.

“It just works really well for us.”

Parent Farah Furnival has been making the trip to the school for about 15 years and remembers children having to negotiate vehicles parked on sidewalks and drivers mounting curbs to get past.

Farah with family and friends (Image: NQ)

She said: “You have to hold your children’s hands very, very tightly. It was very scary.

“Now that has changed, parents can let go of their children, they can meet friends. Parents are much happier that they are not on the sidelines when their children come to school.”

She acknowledged concerns that some parking spaces had simply moved along the surrounding streets, but said that the School Street itself was “much, much safer”.

For Dame Sarah, this possibility of displacing traffic is exactly why the authorities need to consider the area around any proposed school route rather than simply closing a road.

Measures could include ‘park and stride’ arrangements where drivers leave their car in suitable nearby places and complete the last part of the school journey on foot.

Peel Hall (Image: NQ)

She said: “If you transfer the subject, then that is not good at all.

“What you want to make sure is that you have a solution to take some of these vehicles off the road so people don’t feel like that’s the only choice they absolutely have.”

Greater Manchester’s target is to have 100 school routes in place by May 2028, but Dame Sarah hopes the program will continue beyond that figure.

She said: “We will just continue to grow and grow the network of school roads to make it easier and safer for everyone.”