School children in Grange can now feel safer thanks to Halton Housing’s donation of four school buddies to Halton Lodge Primary School, warning parents and motorists about poor parking outside the school.

The signs outside the school on Grangeway have been funded as part of our Destination Grange programme.

Laura Davies, Neighbourhood Officer for Grange said: “As part of the Destination Grange survey, we had several responses mentioning irresponsible parking on the zig zag lines near the school, which is dangerous for children crossing the road.  This would lead to children having to cross the road inbetween cars, which is extremely dangerous and has led to lots of near misses. We hope by providing these school buddies, it will give parents and children the reassurance that they are safe when crossing the road”.

Anthony Hilldrup, Halton Lodge Primary School Headteacher said: “We are very grateful for this very kind and generous donation. The safety of our pupils as they cross the road at the start and the end of the school day, is a real concern – despite having a crossing patrol outside the school. We try to encourage our parents to be considerate to our neighbours and to avoid causing any obstructions - and we know the majority of our families do this. However, when vehicles are parked so they block the pedestrians’ view - making it dangerous to cross the road safely - we know a child from our school could get seriously hurt or killed. We really hope these signs will make any drivers who are unaware of these dangers to stop and think - and show greater consideration by finding a safer and more suitable place to park and wait.”

The new signs match the school’s uniform and will help lollipop man, Steve as an effective, visual way of tackling the issue of inconsiderate parking outside the school.