School Street trial at St Thomas’ Primary in the Heatons to start next week

Following the recent consultation about a school street[1] for St Thomas’ Primary School in Heaton Chapel it has been agreed by Councillors that the trial will go ahead.

The trial scheme will start on May 15 and continue until Wednesday, July 26, 2023. During this period, there will be a further public consultation on the trial.

A decision about the future of the scheme will take place once the consultation results have been evaluated.

The road closures associated with the scheme will not be in operation during the half term holiday between Monday, May 29, to Friday, June 9, 2023.

From May 15, 2023, vehicular access to the school entrance at start and finish times will not be allowed for parents unless, due to a specific need, you have been issued with a permit or have a blue badge.

Some local roads will be closed to school traffic, and parents are therefore encouraged to either leave the car at home and walk, cycle or scoot to school.

How will the trial work?

The arrangements and timings for the following roads to be closed to general and school traffic will be as follows:

In the morning, all four roads listed below will be closed between 8.30am and 9am.

  • Buckingham Road from the junction of the A6 to the junction of Chandos Road.
  • Buckingham Road from the junction with Peel Moat Road.
  • Brownsville Road from the junction of Buckingham Road to Clarence Road; and Tatton Road North between Buckingham Road to Clarence Road.

In the afternoon, the Buckingham Road closure from the junction of the A6 to the junction of Chandos Road will be closed between 3pm to 3.30pm.

The remaining three other closures on the west side of the railway will be closed between 3.10pm and 3.40pm.

Permit holders and other essential groups such as carers, emergency services etc. will have access, but general traffic will not.

School visitors without a permit or valid Blue Badge will be denied access by the volunteer marshals located at the entry and exit points at both sides of Buckingham Road, Brownsville Road and Tatton Road North. If you, another carer or your child does not have a Blue Badge but find access very difficult, please contact the school to discuss your needs.

There will be no vehicle access or exit at the junction of the A6 and Buckingham Road during the road closure times. New signs are being put in place on the A6 (Wellington Road North) to inform all drivers of this.

Marshals will place ‘Road Closed’ signs and traffic cones in the road and will allow access to permitted vehicles. The trained marshals will be readily identifiable, as they will be wearing high-visibility clothing.

If your journey requires you to continue to use a car on the A6 to access the Infant School, please use one of the other access roads from the A6 and be aware that you will not be able to turn left from Chandos Road onto Buckingham Road (residents and other permit holders will still be able to do this).

The one-way system on Buckingham Rd/ Edgerton Road North is still in effect.

During this trial, we are encouraging as many of those travelling to drop off children at this school to please change your journey to school to walking, cycling or scooting.

We do understand that for some parents/guardians this is not possible, therefore if you are parking in the area, please ensure that you:

  • Leave extra time to walk to the school after parking.
  • Park safely away from the school street.
  • Drive very carefully as more children and families will be walking, cycling, or scooting to school.
  • Be considerate and legal in your parking and don’t double park, block anyone’s driveway, or park on grass verges or pavements.
  • Respect the local environment by turning off your engine when parked and taking your litter home if there is not a public bin.
  • Civil Enforcement Officers and Police are supporting the school street trial.

If you need to discuss any issues about the scheme, please contact us at [email protected].

If you are unable to use email and need to speak to us by phone, please contact the consultation team on 0161 217 6043 who can take contact details and we will call you back.

References

  1. ^ school street (www.stockport.gov.uk)