Parents urged to ditch the car for the school run as pupils start the new term
Northern Ireland’s Public Health
Agency has joined Infrastructure Minister Nichola Mallon and walking and
cycling charity, Sustrans in calling for parents to rethink the school run, as
pupils return to the classrooms after a five-month absence next week.
The Public Health Agency, Department
for Infrastructure and Sustrans are urging parents across the country to leave
their cars at home when accompanying their children to school, and to walk,
cycle or scoot instead.
With many people still working from
home, daily commute travel patterns are likely to have changed.
Minister Mallon said:
“Out of the
darkness of COVID-19, one of the positive behavioural changes we have seen is
more people and families choosing to walk or cycle as part of their journey or
daily exercise. With the new school term starting, it is the perfect time
to build on this where we can. I would encourage parents where it is
possible to leave the car at home and enable our children to actively and
safely travel to school.
“Walking,
cycling or scooting to school improves children’s health, confidence and
concentration as well as teaching them the rules of the road and how to walk
and cycle safely. The Active School Travel Programme which my Department
co-funds with the Public Health Agency aims to encourage children to make the
move to more active ways to get to/from school. My Department also supports the
Cycling Proficiency Scheme which also trains school children how to ride their
bicycles safely.
“More walking
and cycling benefits not only our own individual health, by cutting down on
traffic congestion and reducing air pollution, we will also improve the quality
of life for everyone in Northern Ireland. Greener, cleaner, healthier and happier people and places must be our aim as we learn to live
with this new normal.”
And the charity Sustrans are asking
parents to use the chance to make a positive change, by encouraging their
children to travel to school in greener healthier ways.
Sustrans Active School Travel programme manager Beth Harding said:
“It has been exciting to see more
families out walking and cycling in the past few months. With the return to
school, families have an opportunity to create new healthy habits. The journey
to school is a chance to get a bit of regular daily exercise for both children
and their parents who may still be working from home.
"Now is
the time to make a positive change to the way our children travel to school and
to make it safer and healthier for everyone. We’re urging families to
leave the car and make the school run fun with walking, cycling and scooting.”
Across Northern Ireland, more pupils
than ever are being driven to school, according to findings from the Continuous
Household Survey. The reverse is the case for schools engaging in the
Active School Travel programme which has made a positive impact on children’s
travel habits. The number of children walking, cycling and scooting to school
increased from 35% to 53% by the end of 2018-19 school year. At the same time,
the number of pupils being driven to school fell from 58% to 41%.
The organisations also point to the fact that it will still be necessary to keep
social distancing between adults at school gates, so people are urged to leave
the car at home to avoid crowding.
Air pollution is also a major health concern as is the rising levels of
obesity.
The Public Health Agency is urging
parents to use the school run to get in the recommended physical activity for
themselves and their children. Dr Hannah Dearie from the Public Health Agency
said:
‘We are
delighted to support the Active School Travel programme, in partnership with
DfI, to help reduce the levels of childhood obesity in a fun, safe and
interactive way. Obesity is one of the biggest public health challenges of our
time and guidance indicates that those who are seriously overweight are more at
risk of severe illness from COVID 19.
“As many as
one in four children aged between 2 and 15 years old are overweight or obese in
Northern Ireland. Active travel through walking, cycling and scooting can help
reduce this statistic and also helps a child’s mental health. After one year in
the programme, the number of children completing the recommended 60 minutes of
physical activity every day increased from 27% to 38%.”
Local schools are keen for parents to
swap the car for active travel. Principal Micheal McIver from Knocknagin
Primary School, in Desertmartin, said,
“We support
Sustrans in their call for parents to ditch the car and walk or cycle to school
with their children instead. More families walking and cycling will help reduce
congestion at the school gates and will help pupils arrive ready to learn for
the day.”
To find out more visit www.sustrans.org.uk/NISchools