Grants to help children get to school safely

6:00pm Thursday 30th October 2008

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SCHOOL children in South Gloucestershire will be getting a safer journey to school thanks to government cash totalling almost £120,000.

This term more than 20 schools across the district will share £117,000 worth of grants to help create safer and greener routes for their pupils.

Schools to get the cash boost include, St. Mary’s Primary School, Thornbury, Christ the King Primary School, St Helen’s Primary School, Almondsbury Church Primary School, Raysfield Junior School, Rodford Primary School, Tortworth Primary School, Old Sodbury Primary School, St. Paul’s Primary School, Gillingstool Primary School, Hawkesbury Primary School and the Castle School.

In order to gain access to the cash all the schools have been developing travel plan bids over the past year with support and advice from South Gloucestershire Council.

The applications were then passed on to and decided by the Department for Children, Schools and Families.

The travel plans will vary depending on each school’s individual needs but the measures to be introduced include reducing car travel to and from school to help cut congestion, encouraging safe walking to school and a healthier lifestyle, introducing road markings to improve safety near school buildings, erecting bike storage and teaching pupils about sustainable transport in the classroom.

Councillor Brian Allinson, South Gloucestershire Council’s executive member for planning, transportation and strategic environment, said: "These grants are good news for schools. They have worked hard on their bids with support from the council, and the travel plans will help to introduce safer, greener and healthier routes to schools while helping to cut congestion on our roads."

Since the scheme was introduced several years ago more than 90 schools in South Gloucestershire have applied for travel plan grants and received in total £500,000 to implement schemes to reduce reliance on using cars.