Oddly enough, today I've had an email from the school inviting me to an open meeting to discuss parents' concerns about air quality around the school (it's next to a busy road, although the buildings are set well back from the road itself). I wonder what I might suggest.
This is what I wrote:
Dear Mrs -
Thank you for this. I was at the presentation a couple of weeks ago and, as the schools’ proximity to the main road was a factor that weighed against it when making our decision to take up the offer of a place, was reassured by your comments that the levels of pollution around the school buildings and proposed play areas are immaterial when compared with those around the road itself.
That said, I was very surprised when I came to the school at 4.15 one evening last week for the first time (my son normally takes one of the minibuses) to see the drive in front of the school packed with waiting vehicles, many with their engines running. I had noted in the parents’ handbook that the school “actively encourages all parents to limit congestion by avoiding use of the front drive” and had assumed this would mean that vehicles were not allowed in. By permitting vehicles to idle just a few yards from the school buildings the school is, in effect, inviting in the pollution about which parents have expressed concern.
I suggest that as a first step, irrespective of any plans connected with the new build proposal, you make the school grounds a car-free zone (with the exception, of course, of staff vehicles and the school buses). Aside from reducing pollution, this would also make it safer for pupils entering and leaving the building. There are more than enough places in surrounding streets and retail sites for parents to park when dropping off or collecting children. None of these is more than a short walk away, even for those who do not wish their children to be unaccompanied.
Unfortunately, I will not be able to attend the meeting on October 2 but I hope that this suggestion will be given consideration, perhaps as part of a wider drive (sic) to encourage more environmentally-friendly travel to and from school.
It will be interesting to see what response I get.
