Parents and staff at Tollerton Primary School have collaborated with members of the local community to launch a Walking Bus Service which had a very successful inaugural journey on Monday 15 April.
The idea was the result of a pledge made by a parent who attended a Carbon Literacy course and following discussions with school staff and a survey of parents to gauge interest, arrangements were quickly put in place for the service to begin at the start of the summer term.
Headteacher Katie Smith said: “As with many schools, traffic and parking at the beginning and end of the school day is a real challenge for us. We pride ourselves on the part we play in our local community and have been keen to provide a solution that works for everyone. A walking bus is perfect for us as it offers children the opportunity for a swift walk, fresh air and a chat with friends before they begin the school day, parents can ‘stop and drop’ and make their way to work a little earlier, and traffic is moved away from school which makes everything safer for those who walk, scoot and cycle to school. We are very grateful to members of Tollerton Methodist Church who kindly agreed for us to use their car park as our bus stop.”
Carole Parsons, parent of James and Levi who was behind the idea said: “I’d been wondering what we could do for some time but when a carbon literacy course I went on highlighted some walking bus schemes as a way to reduce carbon emissions, I thought “That’s what we need in Tollerton!” Thankfully Mrs Smith and Mrs Read were very enthusiastic from my first suggestion and I’m so grateful to them and the Methodist Church for helping to get the project up and running. My children already walk to school, but I know they’ll enjoy being part of a bigger group of their friends and doing something positive for the planet too. I’ll be happy that their journey to school will be safer with less traffic around the school gates.”
Initially the walking bus will operate on Mondays and Tuesdays, but the school hopes to be able to offer additional days. 14 children joined the bus on day 1 and 22 on day 2, the aim is to have enough children to fill a double-decker!