To ask about parking on zigzag lines in front of school?

[WhoWants2Know]

Is this an issue for other schools? I don’t personally do it, but my local school has a number of parents who have always parked on the zig zag lines in front of school, as well as a couple of taxis who take kids to neighbouring villages. The other nearby school has the same issue, where parents just ignore the lines and park wherever they can. It’s a straight road, but narrow enough that the parked cars mean only one lane is left for traffic. School have recently sent letters asking people not to park there, but they do it anyway. Some have a couple of small children who I think are sleeping in the car.

Anyway, yesterday was the school’s pantomime trip. Letters and texts asked parents to collect children at 1:30, as the school was closed for a repair. Everyone arrived, including parents and taxis who parked on zigzags. The school building was locked and no staff or kids present. Coaches arrived after 1:45, with nowhere to park, and the road was blocked so that they couldn’t move forward either. So the kids disembarked in the road and wove through cars and a crowd of parents into the school hall, where they were then released.

Today the school sent home a letter cancelling next year’s pantomime trip and any other trip where parents might arrive at the same time as coaches.

I’m not entirely sure who is being more unreasonable here. The parents shouldn’t park there, but equally I feel like the school could have asked parents to collect after the kids were back to the school. They also could have asked at least one member of staff to be present to direct parking and direct the smaller kids as they got off the bus. Either way, punishing the entire school for the actions of a few parents seems a bit harsh, and I feel pretty sure the same parents will still be parked there tomorrow. Who is being (most) unreasonable?

[Reallytired17]

Sounds like they’re at the end of their tether tbh

[Twitchingdog]

Well where should the coaches parked surely parent knew where the coaches normally park .

[BenLui]

The parents are completely at fault. I’m surprised the school haven’t ask the local traffic wardens to ticket them.

[chickenowner]

The headteacher and senior management team have probably tried everything they can think of and are fed up with selfish parents.

They are also trying to avoid any potential road accidents or missing children.

I think the school is being entirely reasonable.

[ShutUpBaz]

Good on the school for considering the safety of the kids over the parents who park dangerously so they don't have to walk five minutes. If the parents want the trips to go ahead, they should stop parking like arseholes.

[WhoWants2Know]

They might be at the end of their tether. It’s a new head in a school that recently became an academy. In previous years, the parents all parked there with no complaints, so I’m not sure why it’s become an issue this year. I’ve never noticed whether this happens in other areas, but the I know the next village school has the same situation.

[TheLastSoala]

It doesn’t happen at all at my local schools (SW London)... but I know it used to be a massive problem.

About 10 years ago parent volunteers spent over a year patrolling before and after school, moving on anyone who stopped on the zig zags.

Was unpleasant and nasty for everyone involved, but once sorted it had never come back and no one would dream of parking there now.

[VivaLeBeaver]

The kids had to disembark into the road, had to weave through the cars and you’re not sure why it’s become an issue this year? Really?

Good on the school. They are prioritising the kids safety.

[WhoWants2Know]

It was definitely stupid to park where the coaches would be, I can’t argue that. Generally cars stretch at least half a mile in either direction from the school, so if they had moved it would have been bit of a walk.

[Reallytired17]

not sure why it’s become an issue

Because it blocked a road?

[SavoyCabbage]

From the schools perspective it’s less about punishment and more about reducing the risk to the children. They will have tried telling people and that’s not working (although you are technically allowed to park on the zig zags outside of the restricted hours) so they have to make sure the children aren’t exposed to that risk again.

My dd has never ever been on a trip even though she is in year six. And all this risk assessment and parents blaming schools for stuff is probably why.

My older dd went to school in another country and went on camp nine hours away in year three where she swam in a lake containing crocodiles.

[WhoWants2Know]

I can see why it was an issue yesterday, obviously. Several hundred kids needed to get off the bus where the cars were parked.

I just felt like the school contributed to the issue by demanding parents collect at 1:30, before the coaches had arrived back.

Normally the kids would have finished the school day and coaches would have been long gone by collection time.

[Grimbles]

Yellow zizags at DS school are only in operation 8-10am and 2.30-4.30pm parking is permitted outside these times. If your school is similar then technically parents aren't doing anything wrong by parking there. Common sense dictates that you don't do it if you know there will be a lot of traffic though!

I don't know why some people have to get as close as they can, it's so much easier and less stressful to park a few minutes away and walk up to the school imo

[MinorRSole]

Good on the school for taking decisive action. The parents should be ashamed, their laziness means their dc are going to miss out.
I've never seen parents park on zigzags at dc's school. We all know what it means.

Schools are damned if they do and damned if they don't so about time they stood up to feckless parents who think they can do what they like

[IvorBiggun]

What kind of cockwomble thinks it’s ok to park on the zigzag lines?

Be cross with the cockwombles not the school.

[MumGoneMild]

The school didn't contribute at all.
The parents who parked like Muppets are at fault

[Glumglowworm]

The school shouldn’t have to tell parents to follow the rules of the road.

The parents are entirely to blame for parking like selfish dicks

[WhoWants2Know]

When I said that I didn’t see why it had become an issue this year, I meant it in the context of “an issue the school felt important enough to write home about”. The school has never complained or written home about it in the past 6 years. I never had to think about it because I don’t drive to school. And past coach trips have been scheduled so that they didn’t coincide with drop off or collection times.

[AccrualIntentions]

It's a huge problem for a lot of schools in my area.
The local authority had a programme attempting to get people to park responsibily (or use other forms of transport where possible) which included a camera car to try to tackle dangerous parking, but I'm not sure it made much difference because these people have no shame and don't give a shit about anyone else's safety.

[Piffpaffpoff]

It is always the same few parents at our school. Self entitled twats who have been asked then told not to but think the rules don’t apply to them. The school’s action will not change them IMO but I’m a bit jaded and cynical.

[Oldbutstillgotit]

How can anyone possibly think it is ok to park on zig zags? I see terrible parking every day at DGS’s school . The police regularly attend and tickets are issued but it still happens .

[MinorRSole]

The school has never complained or written home about it in the past 6 years

I'm not sure that's a great message for these parents to be sending their children. 'Well we know it's wrong but as nobody has told us off we'll just keep doing it'

[Oldbutstillgotit]

Piff - same at DGS’s school . So frustrating.

[milliemolliemou]

OP Yes, the school should have arranged a collection time for parents after the coaches - but if the school is shut because of repairs, it might be hard to keep kids standing outside for half an hour in this weather (you don't say where you are). Appalling there were no staff there at all. So parents ended up blocking the road/parking on safety zigzags - but it sounds as if they do regularly. Six of one, half a dozen of the other.

It might worth asking the PTA to investigate.

[WhoWants2Know]

It’s definitely possible that the parents are just gits. I don’t know them, so I guess I wanted to give them the benefit of the doubt, and assume that they have babies in the car that they don’t want to wake.

The crowd could see that the coaches wouldn’t be able to park, but I don’t think any of the other parents felt assertive enough to ask the cars to move. (I’d worry about getting a punch, tbh!)