Wiltshire Council underlines its commitment to safer school travel with Taking Action on School Journeys programme

Wiltshire Council is helping more schoolchildren around the county to get to and from school safely, with its Taking Action on School Journeys programme.

The programme, which is open to all Wiltshire schools with an up-to-date travel plan, offers grants to provide infrastructure such as cycle or scooter storage on school sites, as well as opportunities to explore on-highways measures, such as new crossings or wider pavements, to make it safer and easier to leave the car at home and walk or cycle to school instead.

As well as the Taking Action on School Journeys projects, the council is also continuing its popular Bikeability, Walksafe and Scootability programmes, which are helping thousands of schoolchildren around the county to travel to and from school safely. In the past year, the council has trained 13,040 children over the three programmes, with many more to come in 2025.

Cllr Tamara Reay, Cabinet Member for Transport, said: "We are committed to improving road safety as part of our Business Plan, and our Taking Action on School Journeys programme goes hand in hand with our excellent Bikeability, Walk Safe and Scootability courses to help more children travel safely and benefit from a suitable environment to choose active modes of travel.

"We are working closely with schools throughout the county. We know when more parents, carers and school children choose to leave their cars at home and walk, cycle or scooter instead, it improves health and wellbeing, helping people to get some exercise, as well as improving air quality and reducing carbon emissions - and it can save money, too.

"But there is more to do, and that's why we're continuing to work with schools throughout Wiltshire to make it easier for pupils to walk, cycle or scooter to and from school, along with training a further 13,000 children this year to make their journeys safer."

The recent Taking Action on School Journeys projects include:

• Box Primary School - upgrade to signalised zebra crossing outside the school and refurbishment of the zebra crossing by the post office.
• Chapmanslade Primary School - installation of bollards and existing informal crossing point, and installation of signs and flashing lights to advertise a part time advisory 20mph limit. This project is still in progress.
• Bitham Brook Primary School, Westbury - installation of part-time advisory 20mph limit and extension of waiting restrictions. This project is still in progress.
• Holy Trinity Primary Academy, Calne - improvements to zebra crossing, provision of bus-stop clearways and waiting restrictions.

Other projects that are currently being explored are:

• Queen's Crescent Primary, Chippenham - measures that make it easier to cross the road and access the school site.
• Holy Trinity Primary Academy, Great Cheverell - request for measures to reduce vehicular congestion outside the school and improve safety for people crossing the road.
• Wyndham Park Infants School and St Mark's Junior School, Salisbury - request for measures to improve safety at school entrances.
• The Stonehenge School, Amesbury - request for measures to improve safety for pedestrians crossing Holders Road.

Any parents that are interested in the Taking Action on School Journeys programme should speak to their school in the first instance. Schools can find out more about the programme and can get in touch with the council at Funding | Right Choice.