Unhappy residents ‘FOBBED OFF’ by the council and REJECT their answer to 'unbearable' traffic at Northampton secondary school

Earlier this month (February), residents living near Duston School spoke out against the ongoing traffic chaos surrounding the school at drop off and pick up times.

A resident said: “Every day, morning and afternoon during the working week, we are plagued by school traffic restricting Berrywood Road, and the residential roads opposite are filled with parked cars. Cars that are parked without any thought or consideration to residents. Driveways are blocked, the throughway restricted to the point where aggression from parents is a regular, not a rare, occurrence.”

However, residents' main issue is that the school has failed to implement a traffic management plan, agreed upon during the planning application process back in 2013. This plan was supposed to allow parents to drop off and pick up their children at the adjoining primary school in an orderly and safe manner, but it has never been put into practice, say residents.

They said: “The school gates remain shut. The traffic management plan that enabled parents to enter the school for a ‘drop off, pick up’ plan has never happened.”

In response, headteacher Sam Strickland said: “Upon joining the school in 2017 I had to swiftly review the car parking situation within the school grounds as an unfit-for-purpose drop-off approach was in place for primary phase parents.

"This approach was built upon an Americanised premise that parents would quite literally drop their child off via their car outside the primary phase building on the school site.

"The primary phase houses 420 children and the school as a whole has over 2,000 pupils in attendance. If every parent were to drive their child to school, the situation within the school grounds would be at the very best chaotic.

"The historic car parking approach where all parents could enter the school grounds via their car was not fit for purpose and crucially a safeguarding risk, posing a huge risk to the entire school community.

"A decision was made to rationalise the number of parents parking on the school grounds, with parking permits issued to vulnerable and disabled parents and families facing serious safeguarding concerns.

"There are also approximately 200 staff working at the school.

"First and foremost the school has a responsibility to provide all employees with a parking space and fundamentally to ensure that the school and the children and staff of the school are safeguarded.”

Following on from that response, residents are now asking the headteacher:

• Why hasn’t the school applied for a change of use for drop-off and parking?
• Why isn’t there more focus on staff walking to work or cycling to work?
• Can more parking near the 3G pitches be used?

Residents say they would also like to see Berrywood Road, Alderney Close, and Ryeland Road opened. Both Alderney Close and Ryeland Road are closed for ‘safeguarding’ reasons, leaving only the Berrywood Road entrance for thousands of students, staff, and parents.

The Duston School has declined to comment.

Residents say they have asked WNC if there has been a breach of planning control but have been “fobbed off” when asking.

This newspaper put the same questions to WNC. We asked:

• Could you clarify whether the school's original traffic management plan is being reviewed or enforced?

• Has any action been taken regarding the breach of planning control?

• What specific measures are under consideration beyond discussions with Upton Parish Council?

A WNC spokeswoman said: "Traffic enforcement measures such as double yellow lines are in place at this location, however, we are looking at what, if any, further measures could be put in place to reduce issues surrounding parking and congestion without simply moving the issue to an alternative location. We have also been invited to a meeting with Upton Parish Council and other stakeholders in the coming weeks to discuss this further."

In response to the double yellow lines, residents are not convinced that this will resolve the problem.

They said: “This will again have a massive impact on parking within residential areas opposite the school.”