Residents of an Oldham road with two schools have called for end to 'out of control' cars with one woman claiming she was punched when she asked a parent not to block her driveway
Hey with Zion and St Edwards primary schools are both near Sunfield Way in Lees and like many in Oldham parents drive their children to and from the schools.
But those who live on the street say parking in the cul-de-sac causes problems and many are now calling for a 'school street' to be implemented which would block car access to parents during drop-off and pick-up times.
@theoldhamtimes A woman said she was PUNCHED after asking asking a parent not to park on her drive 😲. Residents in Lees have called for action over 'out of control' parking near two schools #Lees #Oldham #schoolstreet #schoolstreets ♬ original sound - The Oldham Times
A car ‘almost took my daughter off the pavement’
Living nearby, Azad Uddin picks up his daughter from the school on foot.
He said: “It’s pretty dangerous on the roads for our children.
“We’ve complained to the council several times, the council isn’t doing anything about it. I think it’s time for us as a community to stand up as a whole and get this matter under control.
“At this moment in time, it’s out of control.”
Mr Uddin, who has lived in the area for four years, said the problem was ‘especially bad’ during school drop-off and pick-up, but the problem did persist on weekends to a lesser extent.
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Is a school street the solution?
Mr Uddin added: “I’d like for them personally to block the roads off at a certain time, or give us our own parking spaces, to be honest with you.
"We’ve not got any white lines to stop cars – it’s not safe whatsoever in this area to be honest with you, I’m lost for words."
He continued: “We’ve got people parking on the pavements, we’ve got people mounting the pavements, we almost had an incident before the six-week holiday where a child almost got hit by a car, because they’re flying around the corner, the adults, to get to school on time. It’s too dangerous.
“If you have to drive, you can drive but you can park a further distance, not right next to the school where it is a residential area, there’s lots of children, there’s lots of elderly, it’s not safe.
“Even when they’re playing out on weekends I have people pulling up on top of the pavement.
"It’s not advisable really to pull up onto the kerb when the children are playing. A girl was learning how to ride a bike the other day, and the car’s come up to the pavement, almost took her off the pavement.
“All I get is ‘we pay road tax, I pay tax and we’re allowed to park where we want to park’. That’s fine, but not for the safety of our children.”
The area had been listed for a ‘school street’ back in February, but this was then delayed.
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The scheme would close the road to cars, except for residents with permits, blue badge holders, and some other exemptions, during school pick-up and drop-off times.
At Oldham’s first school street, outside St Anne’s in Royton, most cars are restricted from 8.15am to 9am, and 2.45pm to 3.35pm, with another set to operate from September 25 in Chadderton.
‘It would take me 40 minutes to walk’
Parent Nakita Barron was picking up her child by car. She said it would take her about 40 minutes to walk to the school.
She said: “It’s normally busier than this, I’ve arrived here at 10-to just so I can park. I used to park on the football club across the way, but because parents weren’t using it, they shut it. So now there’s nowhere to park.”
Asked what she would do if a school street were to come in, Nakita said: “I live about 15 minutes away, so it’s hard to find somewhere else to park. If I could walk here I would, but I don’t know exactly what’s going to happen.
“And obviously if it’s raining or whatever then my little boy has got to sit in wet clothes all day at school. I don’t know, it’s one of those things that we’re going to have to all look into, I think, and see.”
‘We’ve been closed in at every stage’
Jutta Jacob lives on Sunfield Way. She doesn’t drive as she is disabled.
She said: “Sometimes they double park, sometimes they’ll park on the white lines, they’ll reverse in and they can’t get out. It’s quiet all of a sudden, and then it just comes.
The 72-year-old added: “The thing is, if you’re going to build them schools, make provisional parking. You can’t just build schools and expect it to clog up all your residents that live here all the time.
“I’ve lived here since 1972. It was all open plan, there were no fences as such, it was a nice horse field at the back. My children used to like seeing the horses at the back, it’s built up now.
“It’s like we’ve been closed in at every stage, people have put extensions and walls have come up, it was very open. At the bottom it was all fields, my children used to play on that.”
‘Where are we supposed to park?’
One parent, who didn't want to be named, said: “Every school has issues with parking, it’s not only this school. The parents don’t cause chaos with anyone’s drive.
"I’ve been here nearly four years now, they don’t cause issues. Every school’s got issues with parking.”
Another, who also did not want to be named, added: “If you park on the main road, then you’re blocking the main road off. Where are we supposed to park to come all the way here, if you think about it?”
Punched over parking
One resident, who did not wish to be named, spoke of intimidation at pick-up and drop-off time.
A supporter of plans for a school street, she said: “It’s intimidating. This is a problem. I’ve been punched because someone parked on my drive, and the intimidation and a threat to the lady across the street.
“We’re on a quiet, normal street. Come the weekend you hardly see any cars, maybe two, parked on the street and that’s it.
“When it’s full flow like next week, both sides will be full, parallel parked and people trying to get between.
“You can understand the desperation, yes, they’ve got to get their children to and from school, but courtesy – and it’s just the few parents who tar and feather everyone.”
Headteacher weighs in
At the school gate, Hey With Zion co-headteacher Sara Machin said the school street was ‘something that we’re working with’, but wouldn’t give her opinion on the situation.
Pressed further, she said: “[The school street] is something we’re working with the Department for Transport on, but whatever the solution is, we’re fully involved.
“We’re working with the Department for Transport and all the powers-that-be to come to a good solution. It is our aim to keep all of our children safe. That’s all that I would like to say.”
Council ‘committed to making roads safer’
Councillor Chris Goodwin, cabinet member for neighbourhoods, said: “We are committed to making roads around our schools safer and healthier for pupils, which is why we have introduced a School Streets scheme to reduce congestion, problem parking and air pollution.
“This initiative is already proving to be a great success at St Anne’s Primary School in Royton after it was introduced in June and many more schools are set to follow as part of our approved programme of works for the upcoming academic year.
“This includes St Edwards RC Primary School and Hey with Zion Primary School in Lees, who we are working closely with to finalise their school street plans before we then consult with local residents about proposed measures for the local area.”
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