to think I should be able to park near the school?

They do here too. You'd imagine they'd have things to do rather than sit from 2 pm (or sometimes earlier) until 3.20 pm here just to avoid walking from a few streets away! Strange behaviour

Get the local parking warden on the phone, they check you're the owner then are happy to pop out and ticket someone when you call.

Why on earth haven’t you told them to get off your drive????

If only I had an hour of free time to spend sat in the car before school pick up…
but yes, people do that. Crazy.
Get well son DD

What 20 miles? Occasionally DS asks me to pick DGC up from school. It’s 10 miles each way. I have no intention of walking that far, and I doubt I could. As I only work part time, I do have time to wait half an hour in the car.

Some are but not all children go to their catchment school. My DD's school is a 45-50 min walk away either along a disused canal which is lethal in winter or along a 60 mph road that I wouldn't feel safe walking DD along. Plus I can't afford that sort of time twice a day, each way. That would be 3.5hrs out of my day once you include standing on the playground time!

Many parents park stupidly (and early!) at our school too but the Parish Council open their car park to parents and it's a 6-7 min walk to school, so I park there and walk in, along with parents of some of DD's friends.

For the OP though, if there's a staff car park you should have parked there to pick your DD up. I've done that before when I've had to pick DD up when she was ill.

I live a couple of hundred yards from a junior school and the parking can be atrocious.

Some people absolutely arrive nearly an hour before. In winter they have their engines running to keep warm. In summer, to keep cool.

And yes, my dropped kerb/driveway is sometimes considered a bonus parking space. Only last week some bloke parked across my and my neighbour's driveway and sauntered up to the school. Unfortunately for him DP was waiting for him by his car when he returned and gave him a piece of his mind. I don't think that particular man will park there again, but others will.

Upside is that during school holidays the road is wonderfully quiet and empty.

You need some strategically placed traffic cones on your drive. You should have to put up with that.

I live very near a school and yes, parents do arrive ridiculously early to get a prime spot. Irrespective of the fact there is a large car park 3 minutes up the road, and it's a lovely afternoon today. God forbid their precious child has to use their legs and walk! (This is also a perfect justification for blocking in local residents or parking over drives - she's only 5!!!) FFS.

I’m guessing they have to pick up younger siblings from nursery and have to get parked?

Most parents are in the same position. No one WANTS to sit in a car park for an hour.

I would have a sudden need to wash my car with my hosepipe

well… seriously I would park my car in such a way on my drive they could not get on as a more practical solution.

Yes our local primary has parents and lots of grandparents parked up from 2pm.

Yes parents park up an hour or so before school finished. I think it's mad. Wish I had that much free time to be honest.

We live really close to 2 schools, I’ve seen some parents waiting at 1.45 at the secondary and they don’t come out until 3!
It’s always carnage at pick up time. Fact is a lot of people drive that don’t need to and are lazy, I’ve got at least 2 neighbours who drive every single day for the school run, (primary is a 5-7 minute walk, nice walk) secondary is about 3 bloody minutes! And no they are not disabled/hidden disability.
I have no idea why so many people feel the need to park as close as humanly possible to schools, it’s dangerous they are often blocking view of kids crossing etc, we have a a couple of big car parks and a pub that allows use for school pick up, and they are often nearly empty.

Same for me and they couldn't call your parents to collect you because none of the parents at my school had a phone back then! You just had to wait until home time and then walk home with your friends while vomiting or shivering with fever, even if it was blowing a gale and lashing with rain. Nobody was ever picked up by car, mainly because very few Dads (and no Mums) had a car and if they did, they'd be at work anyway.

My own children had a very different experience in the 80s as we lived rurally so they were transported (car / school bus).

I had to walk poor DD several streets away
Well there you go, your " because reasons" meets their "because reasons". I can't understand the enthusiastic parkers, it's much nicer for kids to get some fresh air where possible and average primary commute is still only 1.6 miles where it isn't possible, so it's hardly a lengthy drive. Especially if sick, she won't have wanted to be put in a car. How many miles is it you have to travel?

In a few short weeks I will be done forever with the primary school run after 16 unbroken years of it and I can't wait. I park about 5 minutes walk away and avoid the car park like the plague!

Um, that people get off their lazy arses and walk?

Exactly this, I've never lived anywhere that didn't have a primary school at a walking distance!
Some families might be in more remote/rural locations fair enough, but the sheer volume of parents parking up at 2 bloody PM for 3:15 pick up is mostly comprised of people who simply CBA to walk. It is bonkers to be sat in your car on your phone for over 2 hrs, complete waste of time. Never understood it personally.

And surely, even if you lived a bit further, you could drive back home then cycle to the school?

Secondary school kids even more bonkers, they can walk, cycle or take the bus themselves.

They are. When my youngest was in school the SN carpark was tiny, I had to get there 50 minutes before the bell to get a space.

Very entertaining watching everyone try and fit after it was full up.

Does the school not have a staff and/or visitor car park? Ours does. You’re a visitor - use that.

They are always sat in the cars so usually if i indicate in and often toot the horn because they are engrossed in their phones and haven’t seen me the reluctantly move…

I want to sell my house so don’t really fancy bollards or anything that indicates that I have a CF infestation.

I'd threaten them with towing if they keep doing it.

My old primary school that's still open have never encouraged the parents to go park elsewhere. There is a long road that snakes through a housing estate effectively looping around the school grounds. The parents always park at one end of the road, which creates a bottleneck on the junction with the main road. They could use the other entrance which is a nice wooded bridleway and just walk two or three minutes further, but they don't use it.

Some people's priorities amaze me. Why would you park up and sit in your car for a hour to collect a child at 3:30? Perhaps they had come from other activities? Also, I would imagine a lot of the other cars are not waiting parents, but people parking there for another reason - not least residents and school staff. I am a big fan of school streets that penalise people driving past schools during pick up and drop off times. We should have more of them. People need to learn to walk again.

I'd have to deliberately block my drive

OP - couldn't you get in the staff car park just to pick up?