Commenting on Community Meetings I Have Attended This Week

On Tuesday evening, after my weekly surgery at the Library, I attended a meeting of the Broughty Ferry Development Trust. It was good to hear about the projects which they are working on. I am sure their efforts will help to enhance The Ferry.

On Wednesday evening, I divided my time between the Parent Council meetings at Barnhill and Forthill Primary Schools as their meetings had been arranged for the same night. To my mind, both groups are positive examples of involved parents and carers leading to inspired children. At both meetings I heard about issues that are important in connection with their children's primary schooling. Unfortunately, there remain road safety issues in relation to the dropping off and picking up of children around Barnhill and Forthill. I will raise these issues at the next meeting of the School Parking and Pupil Safety Working Group.

Westbay Residents Demand Some Road Safety Action

Since the new Grove Academy was opened and Eastern Primary School moved to the upgraded old Grove premises, both school have been opening their doors to an increasing number of pupils. This has led to regular parking difficulties for residents of Westbay Court in Albert Road.

Residents of the 17 apartments in Westbay Court have their own off street parking but they find it is very difficult to exit or enter their driveway during the forty minutes or so in the mornings and afternoons when parents and carers are using their road as a very congested drop-off and pick-up zone. Frequently Westbay residents find vehicles parking part way across the entrance to the driveway to their private car parking spaces. Their concerns are not merely about their own inconvenience from getting blocked in. They are very concerned about the risks to life and limb of young children walking and crossing Albert Road because for the restricted sight lines for residents as they exit and enter their driveways in their cars.

Residents first contacted me about this in the Spring last year and on a number of occasions I raised this in writing and at meetings with staff in the City Development Department. Despite a number of reminders from me and the residents, so far the residents think that their reasonable requests have been not been taken seriously enough.

I support the residents' view that this is an accident waiting to happen. I urge the Transportation section of the City Development Department to respond positively to the residents' request. At the same time, I urge parents and carers to drive and park safely and considerately in Albert Road because neither they nor the residents of Westbay Court want to be the cause of a road accident with a young pedestrian.

Progress with Forthill Primary School Road Safety Measures

On Monday night 25 February 2013, the City Development Committee will take an important step towards resolving a road safety issue at Forthill Primary School that was identified in April 2012. The Committee will be asked to approve a Traffic Order for the Part-Time Prohibition of Driving in Fintry Place east of the turning circle at the front of the school. This traffic order would restrict access to this section of Fintry Place to pedestrians only during School Days Monday - Friday 8:30-9:15 am and 3:00-3:30 pm.

The background to this traffic order is that on Thursday 19 April 2012, I visited Forthill Primary School with members of the School Parking and Pupil Safety Working Group. This included officers from Tayside Police, Council staff from Transportation, Education and Travel Active and Councillors like me.  

Section of Finrty Place which will be subject
to part-time prohibition of driving

This is what I observed on our visit:
For about 25 minutes there was a lot of comings and goings including several hundred vehicle movements. There was also a significant number of parents and carers on foot rather than driving right up to the door in their cars. The potentially most dangerous manoeuvres I observed involved cars reversing close to where children were also crossing the school road. While the issues associated with dropping off and collecting children at Forthill Primary School are well known to me, it was important that all the other members of  this group observe the potential dangers to children from the traffic congestion in the vicinity of the school at the end of the school day. It was I think significant that this was the first visit of the working group, which demonstrates the priority being given to systematically investigating and improving  arrangements for picking and and dropping off children at Forthill. The working group have four further visits to Primary Schools in other parts of Dundee next week before we move onto devising some solutions.

The School Parking and Pupil Safety Working Group was set up by the Education Committee on Monday 27 February 2012 and the group is chaired by the Chief Executive. 

I am sure parent and carers, with children at Forthill Primary School, will be relieved that that one more of the practical solutions we identified last year is about to be implemented.

Additional Traffic Safety Measures Committed for Ferry Schools

Last Friday afternoon, I attended a meeting of the School Parking and Pupil Safety Working Group chaired by the Chief Executive, David Dorward.

The Committee received updates about progress with the implementation of safety measures already agreed. In the light of additional reports, some further safety measures were agreed.

The following safety improvements have been agreed for Ferry Schools:

Forthill Primary School

Work is ongoing in respect of traffic orders connected with the installation of a traffic barrier and use of Forthìll Sports Club Car Park (for staff parking) and would be completed by April 2013.

Grove Academy/Eastern Primary School
Work is progressing to implement the traffic order to make the northerly section of Church Street one way running north to its junction with Davidson Street.

The following additional measures were agreed:-

(i) Yellow box on Church Steet/Queen Street Junction.

(ii) Part-time 20 mph speed limit signage on Queen Street.

(iii) Re-locate Bus stop and Shelter on Claypotts Road (east side).

Barnhill Primary School

It was agreed that an updated risk assessment is to be carried out in light of the planned major building works at the school.

Annual Review
Finally, the Group agreed to meet again in June 2013 to review the effectiveness of the measures that had been introduced throughout Dundee to enhance road safety in the vicinity of our schools.

This has been an effective working group that has really got some things done at schools to hopefully enhance pupil safety in the vicinity of our schools. While some measures have taken longer to implement than we anticipated, I now recognise some of the complexities of introducing improvements that require traffic orders.

Commenting on Two Pupils at Forthill Primary School Hit By Car at Crossing with Patroller

It has been reported in The Courier that earlier this week two young pupils were hit by a car as they crossed Nursery Road on their way to Forthill Primary School. They were apparently crossing with the help and protection of a School Crossing Patroller:

The children's father was reported in the Courier saying: ''It was horrifying — I just watched as it happened. I feared the worst.''
The Courier Reporter added: "Forthill Primary pupils Jodi (8) and sister Charli Ewing (5) were lucky to escape serious injury in the accident with a black Fiat Panda as they walked hand-in-hand across Nursery Road .... Happily, both girls escaped serious harm and did not require hospital treatment. They were recovering at home in Broughty Ferry and are already looking forward to returning to school. The accident is under police investigation."

I am very relieved to learn that the two young pupils who were hit by a car, were not badly injured and will soon be back at school. 

I am member of the School Parking and Pupil Safety Working Group established by The Council in response to a range of concerns raised by parents and Councillors like me about pupil safety in and around our schools. As part of the work of that group, I have visited a number of Primary Schools including Forthill, to see the drop offs in the morning or the pick ups in the evening.

In meeting with parents at school gates, I have heard many stories about car drivers ignoring School Crossing Patrollers with their distinctive 'lollipops' and by so doing putting young lives and the lives of the patrollers at risk. 

I appeal to drivers to take particular care in the vicinity of our schools and slow down when they see the flashing road signs warning of schools ahead and obey the School Crossing Patrollers when they hold up the traffic for our children to cross. No driver wants to have to live with the guilt of maiming or killing a child on their conscience for the rest of their lives.

Grove Academy Visit for School Parking and Pupil Safety Working Group

Yesterday I had a lunch time visit to Grove Academy to meet Depute Head Lesley Elder and members of the Council's Working Group on School Parking and Pupil Safety. 

As part of our ongoing programme of school visits, we were there to observe a number of issues including the 'surge' of Grove pupils as they nip down to the centre of Broughty Ferry to purchase their carry out lunches. 

Most pupils leaving the school at lunchtime were seen to proceed in an orderly manner down Church Street and cross Queen Street with the help of the skilled Crossing Patroller.

As a result of our observations and discussion on the hoof, a number of road safety measures were explored including:

• making the Queen Street/Church Street intersection into a box junction;
• moving the bus stop currently adjacent to the main vehicular entrance to the school on Claypotts Road to a site closer to the segregated pedestrian entrance to the school;
• moving the flashing school warning lights further up Claypotts Road to provide more advance warning to drivers and
• inserting 20 mph flashing school warning lights on Queen Street.

If I had to prioritise these, I think the 'box junction' at the Queen Street/Church Street junction is the most urgent. This would I am advised provide a better separation of the road traffic from our pupils and our Crossing Patroller at the Church Street/Queen Street Crossing point. In the mornings, when traffic flows are heavy, cars driving west towards Dundee on Queen Street form a continuous queue sometimes leaving the children and the Patroller at the Honda Garage (see picture) without a clear passage across the Queen Street. 

This was a most constructive and worthwhile 'meeting'. At the next 'formal' meeting of the Working Group, I shall be pressing for these measures to be implemented to enhance pupil and public safety in and around Grove Academy. 

Safer Routes to Every Primary School in Dundee

Cover of sample draft leaflet
Safer Routes to Primary School

On Thursday afternoon I attended a meeting of the Council's School Parking and Pupil Safety Working Group. One of the positive outcomes from this group is that every Primary School pupil in Dundee will receive a leaflet detailing Safer Routes to their School. These leaflets are being prepared by Dundee Travel Active and should be ready for distribution for the beginning of the new school year in August.


Inside the cover (see sample <<) will be a map to help inform parents and carers of safer routes for taking their child to school. The map will include features such as the position of pedestrian crossings, dropping off points and park and stride locations.


I trust that this will help promote pupil safety in each and everyone of our Primary Schools.

School Parking and Pupil Safety Working Group Meeting Monday 28 May

On Monsday afternoon, I attended the second meeting of the School Parking and Pupil Safety Working Group chaired by David Dorward, the Chief Executive of the Council.
This meeting considered actions arising from the observational visits of the working group to the five Primary Schools in the City assessed as having the highest multiple risk factors. Our visits were undertaken in the fortnightly prior to the election and were focused on the morning drop offs or afternoon pick ups at each of the five schools. In Broughty Ferry we visited Forthill Primary School which Is the largest Primary School by pupil numbers in the city with a projected combined Nursery and Primary school roll of 650 pupils in August 2012.
We also considered reports from Neil Gellatly, Head of Transportation and Caley McDowall on behalf of Dundee Travel Active.
The Chief Executive has a refreshing 'can do' attitude which leads to specific committed outcomes which should help tackle some of the issues we have identified on our visits. I left this meeting with reassurance for parents and carers that things are moving forward and, where feasible, some important changes will be made in time for the beginning of the new school year on Wednesday 15 August 2012.

Eastern Primary School Parent Council Meeting Tuesday 24 April Beginning at 19:15

On Tuesday evening after my surgery at the Broughty Ferry Library, I attended the meeting of the the Eastern Primary School Parent Council. The new Head Teacher, Gillian Knox, attended her first parent council meeting after taking up her new role at the start of the Summer Term. She acknowledged the warm welcome she had received from pupils, parents and carers  and staff and looked forward to working closely with the Parent Council.
In the course of the meeting a number of issues were raised about child safety at the point children are dropped off at and picked up from school.  I was able to brief the parents about the work of the School Parking and Pupil Safety Working Group.
There was also surprise that the use of the Games Hall as a polling station on Thursday 3 May would preclude the school from staying open open on that day. We were told that this was because the games hall could not be sealed off from the reminder of the school. This surprised me because I had assumed that the Games Hall could be locked off so that it could be used as a sports hub out of school hours while securely keeping these users out of the school and council offices. To be investigated!

School Parking and Pupil Safety Working Group visit Forthill Primary School

On Thursday afternoon I visited Forthill Primary School with members of the School Parking and Pupil Safety Working Group. This included officers from Tayside Police, council staff from Transportation, Education and Travel Active and Councillors like me.  

For about 25 minutes there was a lot of comings and goings including several hundred vehicle movements. There was also a significant number of parents and carers on foot rather than driving right up to the door in their cars. The potentially most dangerous manoeuvres I observed involved cars reversing close to where children were also crossing the school road.

While the issues associated with dropping off and collecting children at Forthill Primary School are well known to me, it was important that all the other members of  this group observe the potential dangers to children from the traffic congestion in the vicinity of the school at the end of the school day. It was I think significant that this was the first visit of the working group, which demonstrates the priority being given to systematically investigating and improving  arrangements for picking and and dropping off children at Forthill. The working group have four further visits to Primary Schools in other parts of Dundee next week before we move onto devising some solutions.

The School Parking and Pupil Safety Working Group was set up by the Education Committee on Monday 27 February and the group is chaired by the Chief Executive. 

First Meeting of School Parking and Pupil Safety Working Group Shrouded in Secrecy

 I am not sure that I can can confirm much more than I had previously reported that the first meeting of the School Parking and Pupil Safety Working Group has been called for later this month. 
The Agenda has arrived but as you can see, it has been shrouded in secrecy by applying the"NOT FOR PUBLICATION IN TERMS OF 

PARAGRAPHS 3.14 AND 3.15 OF THE CODE
OF CONDUCT FOR COUNCILLORS."
I am not convinced that this level of secrecy is required in relation to something so clearly of public interest to parents and carers.

My Response to Baillie Rod Wallace's Misleading Statement about Resolving Parking Issues at Forthill Primary School

In the Evening Telegraph on Friday 9 March, Baillie Rod Wallace gave the misleading impression that I, amongst others, had blocked an investigation into an examination and response to parking issues at Forthill Primary school. In fact, I supported an amendment that widened the scope of the review that he had requested. I think it is hard to justify investigating these difficulties in only one primary school in the city when this problem is obviously much more widespread. Even in the other three schools in The Ferry there are also parking problems aplenty and many expressions of parental and carer concerns about child safety at and around the school gates. 

The Education Committee on Monday 27 February agreed overwhelmingly to establish a working group to examine and respond to these issues citywide. The School Parking and Pupil Safety Working Group will be chaired by the Chief Executive and he has lost no time in arranging its first meeting later this month. 

Broughty Ferry will be well represented with the Head of Forthill Primary School, the Chair of the Parent Council of Eastern Primary School and me already confirmed members of the group. As part of this review, we have been promised a risk assessment of every school in the city which will allow us to prioritise the order of the schools we focus on. Bearing in mind that Forthill is the largest Primary School in Dundee and its well publicised parking and road safety issues, I am confident that it will be at or very near the top of that list. 

Parents and carers of children attending Forthill Primary School should be assured that the safety of their children is also high on my agenda for action.Laurie Bidwell Ferry Councillor