Youngsters took to the streets today to highlight safety concerns outside their Huddersfield school.

The children were joined by staff and parents for the noisy protest outside Dalton School, where many parents insist on driving almost up to the school gates to leave their offspring.

Many ignore the zig-zag safety markings which run across the whole of the front of the school in Mayfield Avenue and around the corner into Dalton Green Lane.

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The protests are taking place every day this week to try and raise awareness among parents of the 530 children at the school.

One mum, Hayley Eastwood, said: “The parking is often dangerous and there have been a few near misses between cars and children.

“We are getting a lot of support for what we are doing.”

School spokesman Angela Beaumont said: “The parents, children and staff at Dalton School have taken to the streets in their protest at unsafe, illegal and lazy motorists who continue to think the zig zags and yellow lines are purely there for them.

“They are embarrassing and endangering their own children as well.

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“Unbelievably, children are thrown out of cars on corners and in the middle of the road to negotiate through parked cars just to save the motorist from walking a little bit farther.

“The local residents are fed up of not being able to get out of their own drives, and some cheeky motorists even use the drives knowing the residents to be at work without any permission.”

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There has been a lot of support from the majority of the parents who are keen to join the week long protest. Christie Lanquetin walks her four children down Mayfield Avenue and said: “I have had near misses and car doors swung into the children from cars parked on the zig zags even while my family are on the pavement holding onto the pushchair.

A parent support group and families has made banners and led the protest and Year 5 pupil Jaeda Simpson was in full voice teaching everyone the chants.

Mrs Beaumont added: “Sadly, when the protest is over, same as in most schools, some parents and carers will continue as before. There really needs to be some sort of major financial deterrent.”

Headteacher Ian Richardson Headteacher added: “Our school community has really pulled together to tackle a major issue.

“I am asked almost daily from parents and residents what we are going to do about the problem. I hope it doesn’t take a child or adult to be seriously injured to make people listen and act.”