Fears raised over danger drivers outside Goddard Park School

Cub leader Nas Orchard says safety measures in place at Goddard Park Community Primary are not enough to deter parents from parking dangerously when collecting their children.

He spoke out after a boy was knocked down in Welcombe Avenue last month.

“You see near misses and dangerous situations every day,” said Nas.

“I’d hate to think of anything happening to one of our Cubs. Loads of children live round here,” he added.

The road has double-yellow lines and traffic calming measures in place.

Following a safety campaign by the school, signs and additional zig-zag lines were introduced on one side of the road last year.

But Nas says these are frequently disregarded.

“Whatever is in place at the moment is not adequate and more needs to be done,” said Nas.

Kelly Stoneham, local resident and mum of three children at the school, said: “I’m worried about how dangerous this road is.

“It is something you worry about as a parent, not only that something might happen to your child but that they might see something awful happen.

“People park where they’re not supposed to and it blocks the view for both cars coming and people trying to cross the road,” she said.

The mum, who walks her children to school, added: “The school does quite a bit to help things, sending out newsletters and notifications all the time telling people not to park where they aren’t meant to.

“Unfortunately it’s the parents’ responsibility not to park there. But I do think the council could do more.”

Nas, a leader at 19th Swindon Scouts, wants a bus lane-style camera to be installed to catch anyone as soon as they stop on the double-yellow lines.

He said: “People break the law all the time on the roads, with accidental speeding. But this is a deliberate act, parking on the yellow lines outside the school.

“We need to make people aware of the dangers,” Nas added.

He called for better enforcement of the 20mph speed limit, more zig-zag lines added to the other side of the road and one of the grass areas near the road to become a short-stay car park.

“It’s a good school,” Nas said. “So lots of people want to send their kids there and they come from other areas of Swindon by car.”

A resident whose driveway joins Welcombe Avenue said: “That road is a nightmare.

“From 8.45am and 9.15pm and 2.45pm and 3.15pm it’s just terrible. It’s a wonder no-one has been killed.

“They’ve put up lines to try and stop people parking but it makes no difference,” he said.

Nas, who lives on Welcombe Avenue started a road safety campaign after a motorcyclist was seriously injured crashing into several cars outside his house.

“The impression I got was unless a child gets knocked down or killed, nothing can be done about it. Now this has happened and something should be done to stop it happening again,” he said.

In a statement, Wiltshire Police said: “The incident in Welcombe Avenue was fully investigated and the driver was found to not be at fault.

“Over the past year, there has been three reported collisions which have resulted in minor injury – two of these were found to not be the driver’s fault.

“We have not received any concerns regarding speeding issues.”

'Parents need to observe the rules'

Goddard Park headteacher Mike Welsh said: “We spend a great deal of time in school with our children and parents talking about road safety.

“Virtually all Swindon schools, and indeed nationally, have issues with cars parking at drop-off in the morning and pick-up at the end of the school day. Sometimes these are short journeys which could be replaced by walking.”

Mr Walsh said the major issue was on-street parking. “The parking creates significant safety hazards when crossing roads,” he said.

Highlighting the safety measures introduced last year Mr Welsh said: “To reduce accidents and near misses depends upon parents and residents observing double-yellow and zig-zag lines, and parents keeping close care of their children when walking along the road.

“The final part of the jigsaw is better enforcement when a minority of people ignore parking or speed restrictions. There is no excuse for this or for blocking driveways of houses.”

The council's response

Responding to Nas Orchards’ concerns about the safety of Welcombe Avenue outside Goddard Park School.

A spokesperson for Swindon Borough Council said: “The safety of members of the public, and children in particular, is of paramount importance to us and in recent months a number of safety improvement measures have already been introduced at this location.

“Last year, ‘School Keep Clear’ markings were installed and they are being monitored by our camera car.

“Improvements have also been made to the crossing point and the site still benefits from a School Crossing Patrol.”

He added: “Traffic-calming measures are in place and the maximum speed in the area is 20mph.

“There is already a small section of road outside the school available for parking, but, generally speaking, we would rather the area immediately in front of schools be kept clear to improve the visibility of pedestrians and cyclists.”