Marsden school demands safety measures on pavements outside gates

A SCHOOL is demanding measures to improve safety outside its gates.

Marsden Infants and Nursery School wants Kirklees Council to repair the pavement on Brougham Road leading up to the school.

And the school is urging the council to carry out a safety assessment of the street.

Lorries and other delivery vehicles have been ignoring double yellow lines and parking on the pavement outside Marsden Mechanics Hall next door to the school.

The vehicles have repeatedly caused cracks and dips in the pavement and have also been a hazard to children and parents walking to and from the school.

Childminder Dymphna Townend has suggested the council extend the railings outside the school to prevent motorists parking on the pavement outside Marsden Mechanics Hall.

Ms Townend also suggested a zebra crossing be installed by the school and a lollipop person employed before and after school.

She said: “We have to walk around puddles every morning and that’s bad for people with pushchairs.

“I’ve tripped twice on the pavement.

“It’s been in a bad state for 18 months.

“It’s extremely dangerous for children coming in and out of the school.

“All the council has done is put bits of tarmac on the path.”

Headteacher Frances Swallow said: “We contacted the council and they’ve done a horrendous job of filling in the holes on the pavement and they didn’t fill in the hole where one lady fell.

“We want to make it safe but it’s up to the council to come up with safety measures rather than have parents and the public come up with ideas.”

Kirklees Council said it is to widen the pavement at the junction of Brougham Road and Manchester Road to make it safer for pedestrians to cross.

The council will also be installing speed indicators around the school.

A spokeswoman for the council said: “The only parking issue that we have dealt with recently is that the school zigzags did not go over one of the entrances on Brougham Road and parents were parking on it. A road marking has been installed to alleviate this.

“There are double yellow lines around the Mechanics Institute and there has been evidence that vans park on Peel Street by the bus stop when delivering. We have had no direct complaints about parking on Brougham Road.”