News: May 2008 Archives

Local schools have done a lot to try to get parents to leave their cars at home and walk or cycle to school, with considerable success.

Now a new report highlights the dangers of the school run. 

Eleven-year-olds starting secondary school twice as likely to be killed or seriously injured on our streets than 10-year-olds.

Parents who try to keep their children safe by driving them to school are putting them at greater risk of being involved in a serious road accident when they start travelling more independently to secondary school, according to the charity Living Streets.

The charity's new 'Backseat Children' report highlights that children who have not practised walking to primary school fail to learn traffic awareness and are therefore more vulnerable on our roads.

Latest figures from the Department for Transport reveal that an 11-year-old starting secondary school is almost twice as likely as a 10-year-old at primary school to be killed or seriously injured in road collisions while walking to school. The report also shows that driving the school run denies children the chance to interact with their local community, become 'streetwise' and develop independence.

You can get a copy of the report and read more details here. Or better still, think before you drive.

Money is available to younger people from the City council this year for local projects.

The fund is available to support young people aged 13 – 19 years put into practice their ideas about activities and services they want, things to do and places to go. This year we are asking for bids between £5,000 and £30,000 only and they will be focusing on groups that are in some way disadvantaged.

The money could be used for anything from buying equipment, building a skate park, paying for a residential trip, improving building facilities or providing specialist workshops for your group. There are contact numbers on the form for any queries, please get in touch with any questions.

Adults appear to be needed to fill in the application form (yeah right!) and it has to be in by the end of June. Given that our teenagers often hang out, and yet have built themselves a bike park down by the river, and say that are always on the lookout for places to be, perhaps they might want to give it a go. Contact:

Tim Waudby
Community Leisure Officer
Children and Young People's Activity Coordinator
Early Years and Extended Schools Service
Mill House
North Street
York
YO1 6JD

Tel: 01904 554698

Further to our story (here), there have been developments at the old churchyard. 

Bish dot net has learnt that the Trustees (who are responsible for the churchyard in its entirety) have closed off the path around the site and the site itself whilst work is carried out.  The lighting has been repaired at a cost of over £500, and CCTV has been installed. A donation of soil has been delivered, and our picture below shows workman levelling it out along the river bank in order to build up the path, and provide footings for the ironwork fence panels that will be installed along the river side of the church yard. 

An application has been made for funding to install the fencing, and once done access to the church yard will be by the front gates that will be kept locked at night. 

The Trust has published an update on the current situation that can be downloaded and read in pdf here.