Marie Tidball MP, Member of Parliament for Penistone and Stocksbridge, visited Cawthorne Primary School to meet with the School Council to discuss their concerns about road safety in Cawthorne, and how they are raising awareness about it.
They were accompanied by Headteacher, Adam Bramall, Cawthorne Parish Councillor and school governor John Walker, Parish Councillor Margaret Broadhead, and Governor Roger Nelson.
The School Council told Marie about their dangerous driving concerns in the village, including speeding, idling cars, and problematic parking. They informed her of their efforts to raise awareness about road safety both within the school community and beyond the school gates. They have also designed road signs that encourage drivers in Cawthorne to slow down. Last year, the pupils took part in a speed camera initiative with the police, to encourage drivers to change their driving habits.
Their initiative aims to promote road safety and active travel, by using alternatives to cars to get to school, including their ‘Walk to School’ challenge. This encourages pupils to travel to school on foot at least once a week, which aims to reduce the number of cars near the school during peak hours.
Marie listened to the pupils’ concerns and suggested other potential solutions that could be implemented on roads around the school. She said she would write to the local authority to ask for them to introduce a 20mph zone and double yellow lines on the corners of some of the key roads near the school.
The visit ended with a Q&A session, where the children took a keen interest in what Parliament is like, Marie’s background, and how she became interested in politics.
Marie Tidball MP said:
“It was wonderful to visit Cawthorne Primary School to meet their fantastic School Council to discuss their road safety campaign.
The pupils shared some excellent ideas about how to raise awareness about dangerous driving and some potential solutions, including implementing double yellow lines and a temporary 20mph limit near the school during school drop off and pick up. This would be consistent with measures taken outside local schools in Thurgoland and Penistone. I’ll be working with the students, alongside the local parish council and Barnsley Council, to see how we can take these things forward.
It’s exciting to see pupils demonstrate such passion and initiative towards these important causes!”
Adam Bramall, Headteacher, said:
“At Cawthorne, we aim for our children to shine bright and become courageous advocates for the causes that resonate deeply with them. The issue with traffic around our village is a real concern for our community particularly speeding vehicles and dangerous parking.
Our School Council have worked incredibly hard in conjunction with our Governors and Parish Council to drive their Safety campaign and make positive changes around our village.
We are incredibly grateful that MP Marie Tidball visited school to listen to our progress and to offer valuable suggestions. Her support for 20mph speed limits around schools is something that our children, Governors and Parish Council all agreed on and we are excited to see where our safety campaign will lead us next with her backing.”
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