Shock tactics have been used to highlight the importance of safe parking outside a local primary school.
A number of Year 6 pupils, who were recently appointed as Junior Road Safety Officers (JRSOs) at Burgh Le Marsh Primary School, have been working with Police Community Support Officers to look at ways of raising awareness of the issue and came up with the idea of staging an accident in front of the school gates.
Parents arriving to collect their children from school were able to see the shocking aftermath of the ‘accident’. A pushchair was lying on its side in the middle of the road, close to where paramedics were attending a seriously injured child. The road had been closed off and police were dealing with the driver.
PCSO Pete Cobley said, “It was a very wet day when we staged the event but that was ideal as it is in those sort of conditions that parents may be more tempted to try and park closer to the school, pulling up on the zig zag lines and causing a hazard to children when visibility is already reduced by the weather.
“We aim to encourage more parents to leave the car at home, dress for the weather, and enjoy the walk to and from school”.
Local residents were fully supportive of the event. The JRSOs had visited all the homes in Wainfleet Road beforehand to tell them about the plan and to hear their concerns about safety in the road.
Pupils at the school later made a video about the event, which they have uploaded to YouTube. You can view it here.