The council’s BetterBy team is working with schools to increase the number of children who walk, cycle or scoot to school, and decrease the parents who drive their children all the way to school gate.
One tool used to help, is to encourage schools to create effective School Travel Plans. These are vital for a healthier, greener, and safer future, as they promote and enable more sustainable and active modes of travel.
There are five levels of School Travel Plan, from Green (Approved) to Platinum (Outstanding). Three Slough schools have made great strides on this journey with two achieving Bronze (Good) and one achieving Silver (Very Good). The best School Travel Plans can win a national prize.
James Elliman Academy (Bronze), Slough Central Nursery (Bronze) and Penn Wood School (Silver) all received their certificates recently from Alison Derrick, senior transport planner, at the council.
Kellie Carroll, early years practitioner, Slough Central Nursery said: “We try to keep the children as active as possible and are lucky to have plenty of outside space where they can go come rain or shine. It can be hard for parents to walk or cycle if they have other children at other schools. However, our children encourage their parents. For instance, children knew they would get a stamp on the wallchart every time they walked during Walk to School week, and they did everything they could to ensure they did not miss out on that stamp.”
Hayley Downer, PE Lead, Penn Wood School, said: “We are very passionate and value the importance of travel at Penn Wood School. We encourage the children to increase levels of travel by ensuring they are aware of the impact on the environment, and the positive effect that it has on the health of the community. We are proud to have achieved the silver award level from Modeshift Stars for our excellent travel plan.”
Councillor Puja Bedi, lead member for transport, housing, highways, the environment and environmental services, said: “I am delighted to hear that three of our schools and nurseries have been awarded certificates for their travel plans. Promoting active ways for the children to travel to school and working towards more sustainable travel is so important for our children’s health and the environment. I look forward to hearing of more certificates awarded as the year progresses. Thank you to all our hardworking teachers and students who have worked so hard on achieving these awards.”