A PROPOSAL to ban cars from from being parked up with engines running outside school gates has won support from parents in Swindon. But they aren’t sure whether it would be obeyed.

Mums and dads waiting for the home-time bell to ring at Eldene Primary School yesterday were in favour of the ban recommended by Public Health England in a new air pollution evidence review. It was one of the ways suggested to tackle what the organisation says is the biggest environmental threat to health in the UK.

Louise Snell, 34, said: “My son has asthma. He was off school today because of it and car exhausts and things like that certainly don’t help, though they’re not the only cause. If this idea was done everywhere, it would improve the air quality, though I don’t think people would stick to it for long.

“I think a lot of people could walk to school, though it’s not always doable – I park near my friend’s house and walk over.”

Charlotte Sawyer has one child at the school and her twins start in the next school year.

She said: “Air pollution is going to be a much bigger problem for them by the time they’re adults, so it would be a good idea.

“If there was just a sign up, I think people would ignore that, there’d have to be fines and regular checks to enforce it.”

Father Martin Tait said: “Cars outside the gates isn’t a big problem at this school because there’s a car park by it and a lot of parents walk, but I think the ban would be a good idea. Air pollution is definitely a big issue.”

Deanne Smith, 26, said: “The idea makes sense and I agree with it, though some parents would obey it and others wouldn’t be bothered by it. I walk to school, it’s pointless to drive such a short distance.”

Between 28,000 and 36,000 deaths a year are attributed to long-term exposure to air pollution and there is strong evidence that it causes the development of coronary heart disease, stroke, respiratory disease and lung cancer, and worsens conditions like asthma.

Public Health England also suggested redesigning cities with wider streets and more hedges to distance people from highly-polluting roads, setting ambitious targets for installing electric car charging points to encourage more motorists to use low-emission vehicles, creating more low-emission and clean-air zones to discourage high-polluting vehicles from entering populated areas, and investing in more clean public transport, footpaths and cycle paths.

Its medical director Paul Cosford said: “Now is our opportunity to create a clean air generation of children by implementing interventions in a coordinated way. By making new developments clean by design, we can create a better environment for everyone. We recommend that at a local level, any new policy or programme of work which affects air pollution should aim to deliver an overall benefit to the public’s health.”

Road safety charity Brake supported the idea. Campaigns director Joshua Harris said: ““Road crashes and air pollution are both nationwide epidemics which need tackling as a matter of priority, and we welcome Public Health England’s recommendations. People should be free to move in a safe and healthy way every day and on every journey and this includes ensuring the air they breathe isn’t polluted.

“Encouraging people to leave their cars at home and walk, cycle or use other means of active travel can have hugely positive health benefits as well as reducing emissions from less car use. Yet people are often deterred from walking or cycling by the danger on our roads and the risk of exposure to excessive pollution. Redesigning our cities is vital to ensure that people can live and travel in a safe and healthy environment, free from harm from traffic and pollution.”