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Original poster

Banning the school run

304 replies

AElfgifu · 07/06/2014 17:52

leading on from driving/walking thread, Gove suggests banning driving children to school.

All schools to be double red lined ( not stopping, unloading, pausing at all.)

all roads within half a mile of a school to be resident parking by permit only during school drop off or pick up time.

parents not allowed to park within half a mile of their school.

(Although most roads round here must be within half a mile of a school?)

OP posts:
OwlCapone · 07/06/2014 18:27

If you can't manage a half a mile walk...

It's a mile.

anyway, often it's about time, not the actual walking.

OwlCapone · 07/06/2014 18:27

All this would do is move the problem further out. the inconsiderate wanders would still be inconsiderate wankers.

expatinscotland · 07/06/2014 18:28

Does this man get paid big bucks to think of stupid ideas? Unworkable and ridiculous.

ICanSeeTheSun · 07/06/2014 18:28

My son has ASD, he is not entitled to a blue badge, zero road sense and finds the school run a bit overwhelming.

I drive him to school park in a car park and then wait so he is the last one in.

The car park is by the local shops, so I don't see how the government could police that

zoemaguire · 07/06/2014 18:29

We live half a mile from six schools, all surrounded by densely packed houses. They'd have to make a residential parking area out of pretty much the entire city. That's workable only in Gove land, somewhere apparently not meaningfully related to the universe the rest of us live in.

LarrytheCucumber · 07/06/2014 18:29

We live close to a site with three schools and a playgroup. As a resident it would be great not to have to think twice about going out in the car at the beginning and end of the day. Our neighbours at the end of the cul de sac would be thrilled not to have people parking their cars on the corner across the pavement and sometimes across their drive. We would all be happy not to have to dodge parents who think they have more right than us to be there whenever there is an open evening at any of the schools.
However there is not enough parking for staff on the site so what would those staff who normally park in the street do? Run out and move their cars half a mile so they weren't on a red line? Surely it would just move the problem half a mile away. And I do agree about people dropping their children off and going to work.
We are not in London, but in a small rural town, so there is not an option for most people to use public transport to go to work.
Another of Gove's ideas that hasn't been thought through.

gordyslovesheep · 07/06/2014 18:29

BMW6 an other who agree - what about those of use who drive from school to work - do we have to walk to and from school before going to work or are we allowed to drive past school - slowing down to throw the kids out - then carry on to our jobs?

I do drive a 4x4 btw - I have NEVER parked in an illegal or inconsiderate manner

scrappydappydoo · 07/06/2014 18:29

Well if they created more local school spaces so that I don't have to drive my child past two local/walkable schools to her school then I wouldn't have a problem.
Gove seems to have a one size fits all model to everything - whether its academics, holidays in term time or travel to school. There will always be exceptions which demand flexibility not rigidity.

LtEveDallas · 07/06/2014 18:29

if you can't manage a half a mile walk

I could manage it, but I'd be arrested (or dead) if I did it.

Sirzy · 07/06/2014 18:30

Good post giles. And if drivers were more considerate it would make if easier for people to walk to school safely.

TheAmazingChandler · 07/06/2014 18:31

It's a mile if you park at the very beginning of the banned zone and the banned zone is not extended by another school or a gorge or a dual carriageway or something and is not somewhere (high street/near hospital of GPs) that is already rammed with cars.

MrsKCastle · 07/06/2014 18:32

I'm all for encouraging more people to walk to school. I'm astonished by the amount who drive when there isn't a need.

This is a bloody stupid idea though. Many parents need to drive to school for a huge variety of reasons.

Maybe if they worked on improving and expanding schools, so that the vast majority of parents had access to a school that they were happy with, that was within walking distance. Maybe that might help?

Oh no, far easier to demonize parents who rely on their cars.

(Speaking as a non-driving family)

sighsloudly · 07/06/2014 18:33

I drive 26 miles to get to school. It is in a tiny village parking half a mile away would mean parking on the dual carriageway!!

Coffeethrowtrampbitch · 07/06/2014 18:33

I can see why it has been proposed. I live in the same street as a school entrance and it is only a matter of time before a child is killed or injured. This is because of parents unwilling to follow speed limits, the one way system or use designated and legal parking.

The type of parents who do this and cause accidents are not going to be deterred by any new rules, because they think the rules simply do not apply to them.

I would like to see a system of school buses like the US uses, it is only feasible to ban driving near schools if you are offering an alternative to those who do not live in walking distance. But I doubt they would do this because like all workable solutions it would cost money. It seems to be regarded as irrelelvant that it would also save children's lives.

hackmum · 07/06/2014 18:33

It comes from the department of "let's solve a problem by punishing people".

I think there are two main reasons you now see so many children being driven to school. One is that, as has already been pointed out, in families where both parents work, one parent will drive the kids to school en route to work. This obviously applies even if they live near the school, because walking kids to school, then walking home again before driving to work, takes too much time.

The other is the concept of "parental choice" introduced by the Conservative government in the 1980s. Before that, local authorities generally used to insist on sending kids to their nearest school - and if they weren't within walking distance of the school, they'd provide a school bus. Parental choice means that children now go all over the place to school, causing enormous congestion - which anyone with a brain could have foreseen at the time, but I really don't think these people have any brains.

While I can see that congestion near schools is a big problem, I really don't see that this is going to solve it. Apart from anything else, won't you just move the congestion half a mile down the road?

GoogleyEyes · 07/06/2014 18:33

First sort it out so people actually get a place at their closest school. Then, when no child is being driven across town because there wasn't a place any closer and the school they've been assigned is three buses away, then and only then think about dissuading people from driving.

Damnautocorrect · 07/06/2014 18:34

Oh fuck off gove!
I walk to school because it's quicker (due to school run traffic) less stress and I'm a sahm. If I worked of course I'd drive as it wouldn't be quicker to come back and pick the car up.
We've been pushed to chose schools further away from home, forced to have all parents out the home it's just not feasible for everyone.

Picturesinthefirelight · 07/06/2014 18:34

Ha ha

I'd like to see figures for the increase in benefits for all the parents who would have to give up work.

Wouldn't affect us as ds goes to a school round the corner from a town centre car park (unless they want an entire town to close) & dd goes to school where dh teaches with its own large car park/drop off area.

Ds is always dropped off & picked up on the way to & from work.

FatalCabbage · 07/06/2014 18:34

School has arranged with the parish council to use the car park five minutes' walk away. People would rather park on the verges four minutes away the other side.

PTA took part in Walk To School Week with a walking bus from said car park. HT and DHT turned out in support, plus two of PTA committee. One other family showed up (plus three families too late who missed the "bus").

School catchment around a mile, vast majority have a SAHM. People think I have superhuman endurance and organisation to walk nearly every day Hmm

That said, Gove is a deluded twat.

TucsonGirl · 07/06/2014 18:35

No child over the age of 8 that lives within 2 miles of the school should have to be driven to school. They can walk. It's good for them.

Gileswithachainsaw · 07/06/2014 18:35

Agreed sirzy

Ultimately the goal for many will be to have their children walk to school themselves an they can't do that of it's impossible to cross safely or there's the worry of mr or mrs running late and doing a zoom by drop off .

Traffic is always horrendous in the mornings and obviously there's a domino effect that results. Delays mean people rush and park closer or dont care how they park or where they pull over etc.

Quite how to solve the problem I don't know but it's a fact that there are people driving who don't need too.

Picturesinthefirelight · 07/06/2014 18:36

Thinking about where I live, there is probably a primary school every half mile so no one would be able to park anywhere!!!!!

Trooperslane · 07/06/2014 18:36

He's totally, totally bonkers.

It's like a crazy episode of In The Thick Of It.

OddFodd · 07/06/2014 18:37

Gove really is the most enormous COCK ever. Just when I think he cannot possibly get any more idiotic, he pulls another stupid fucking idea out of his arse.

Isn't it about time he learned to think before he speaks?

Carltondance · 07/06/2014 18:37

It's also a massive pita for some staff. The school that I work has no car park so all staff that drive have to park on the residential streets around the school. Some staff would genuinely have to leave their jobs if this came in as their commute wouldn't be doable anymore, and it would make recruitment harder as we aren't close to a station.

Being a dense urban area we have several schools whose 1/2 mile boundary overlaps with ours so we couldn't even park further away. Hopefully this is just a bit of a wind up policy suggestion by gove to get his name in the press (just like the shorter holidays and longer days business)