Parents in plea for 20mph zone outside school near Swadlincote next to busy main road

Parents of children at a school near Swadlincote - next to a road notorious for fast-moving traffic - say they have almost given up trying to get their authority to take action.

At a South Derbyshire District Council meeting on November 23, Tracey Wond, spoke on behalf of parents at Stanton Primary School, which sits on a 30mph bend of the A444.

There are numerous signs advising motorists to slow down ahead of the bend and signs that alert drivers that the speed limit is 20mph when illuminated signs are flashing for the school zone.

However, Ms Wond says there are still numerous problems with speeding vehicles, including HGVs, and says she and other parents have been lobbying Derbyshire County Council to take action for years.

This could include a formal 20mph speed limit zone, she said, but she and others have been repeatedly disheartened by the council's response.

She told the meeting: "I have had a bad response and was made to feel like a nuisance for bringing up the idea of a 20mph zone outside the school when parents are queuing along the road is a bad thing.

"It is a really bad experience getting in touch with the county council at the moment and I am just really concerned about the approach to roads.

"In Stanton, we have the cycle lanes coming in from Staffordshire, being built towards Burton, and equally in Leicestershire you see villages that do have much better speed control into them.

"They manage to slow the traffic down.

"Heading into Stanton we have very fast-flowing traffic and we have a very undulating road, a down slope and an up slope and a turn.

"Getting in and out of the school park, I am surprised that somebody doesn't get hurt. It is just a very dangerous road and I am struggling to get heard.

"I have spoken to other parents and they say 'oh yes, I've spoken to the council and they just fobbed me off', it is just that feeling of public trust eroding, it is eroding and people may just not bring things up anymore."

Cllr Peter Smith, who represents the Swadlincote North division on the county council, said he would be raising the issue with the authority, saying: "Obviously that is something that is of great concern to myself.

"I have actually had a meeting this week with county council colleagues looking at some moves we can take to try and combat some of the speeding especially around schools, the introduction of such things as safety cameras and speed cameras and trying to move that forward.

"I know the Police and Crime Commissioner of Derbyshire has a fund in which she is happy to provide funding aimed at reducing speeding and the parking of vehicles causing issues as well."

Ms Wond continued: "When I raised issues with the county council about speeding they suggested that if I felt unsafe crossing the road I should drive to school and use the village hall car park to park in.

"So for me I would drive 150 metres because I have issues crossing the road.

"There are just lots of concerns that they seem to be absolving themselves of and I am quite shocked by some of the statements we have heard while trying to get to the bottom of this."

A county council spokesperson said: "Safety is a top priority for the county council and we take the concerns of parents very seriously.

"The school is on a busy A road – the A444.

"It's in a 30mph zone and has a number of road safety and traffic management measures in place, including school safety zone signing with twin amber flashing warning lights that operate during school arrival and home times, plus a guard rail between the road and the footpath.

"There are also speed cameras and a double white central line which prohibits any parking or stopping in the area.

"Enforcing speed limits is a matter for the police and we are always happy to talk to residents about any worries or concerns they have."