Council aims to protect school crossing patrols

Plymouth City Council is looking to protect school crossing patrols in the city from the impact of Government budget cuts by asking schools to take more responsibility for them.

The patrols are not under threat as the alarmist headline in today's Herald suggests.

The Council is facing a £65m shortfall over three years as Government funding continues to be reduced and demand for social care services increases, so is looking at new ways of providing services.

Councillor Nicky Williams, Cabinet Member for Children and Young People, said the Council would ask schools to take greater responsibility for the crossing patrols as happens in many other areas of the country.

She said: "We understand the value local school communities place on school crossing patrols and don't want to see cover being reduced. However, the Council is facing a £65m shortfall over three years due to a succession of Government cuts and it has to look at all options for how services are provided. An increasing amount of funding that traditionally came to councils is now going to direct to schools and the vast majority of them are not seeing anything like the cuts in funding that the Council is.

"We do not want any schools to lose this valued service and we want to be proactive and work with schools to transfer responsibility.

"It would put the type and level of cover in the hands of the local community and arguably schools are best placed to recruit school crossing patrollers from within their communities."

The Council would continue to train patrollers and assess the need for traffic regulations.

There are currently 35 school crossing patrols in Plymouth and five of these positions are currently vacant.