ibstock place school

Sandringham School
‘Everybody can be Somebody’
The Ridgeway
St Albans
Hertfordshire
AL4 9NX
t: 01727 759240
f: 01727 759242
[email protected]
www.sandringham.herts.sch.uk
School Travel Plan
October 2012
Sandringham School Academy Trust – Registered in England No. 07523557
1
SANDRINGHAM SCHOOL TRAVEL PLAN INTRODUCTION
Sandringham School produced a School Travel Plan in March 2005. This was part of
an initiative to aid and improve aspects of School Travel, and to follow on from
previous ‘Safer Routes to School’ projects.
This has proved to be very useful and also served to act as a catalyst for
improvement.
The aim now is to produce a more robust and active document, so as to aid in Travel
Plan Development, and to be a ‘live’ ongoing policy.
The next phase of the School Development is a Sports Hall for which Planning
Application has been submitted. This will be for School and Community use and is
scheduled for the spring of 2012. The School Travel Plan will then be updated to
reflect the new Sports Hall.
Martin Petersen
Campus Manager, Sandringham School
Brief description of the school
Numbers
Sandringham School is a state secondary school that educates 1,243 mixed gender
students aged between 11 and 18.
There are currently 170 members of staff, 100 of which are teaching staff and 50
other ancillary staff.
Location
The school is located 1.5 miles outside St. Albans in Hertfordshire. The school is
served by two buses running along The Ridgeway, along with more buses that run
nearby into the centre of St. Albans.
The main campus is bounded to the north by Sandringham Crescent, to the east by
Chiltern Road, to the south by The Ridgeway and there are playing fields to the west
of the school site. The area surrounding the school is a relatively affluent one, and
consists of a number of fairly modern buildings – the school expanded considerably
in 1988 when two schools merged.
The feeder school – Wheatfields Junior – is located west of the site along The
Ridgeway, and was involved in the original Safer Routes to School work in 1996.
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Factors affecting travel to school
Entrances
There are currently five entrances to the school that can be divided into
traffic-free and combined (i.e. traffic and pedestrian entrances). The main entrance is located
on The Ridgeway and can be seen in Fig 1.
Fig 1
The entrance that can be seen in Fig 1 is considered the main entrance to the school. It
provides access to the main car park (which will be discussed later) and is used by staff cars,
visitor cars and deliveries. The entrance is also a thoroughfare for Sandringham School
students who use this entrance to gain access to the school site.
Students who use this entrance can enter the school grounds through the traffic-free entrance,
which is shown in Fig 2 on the following page. This provides safety for the students, as they are
able to enter through an entrance at this point that does not have traffic streaming through it.
There is also a zebra crossing just inside this pedestrian entrance. Fig 1 also shows that there
is a speed bump at the main entrance. It must be noted that since 2001 the school has
operated a ten-minute holdback time, where the main gate at this entrance is closed to vehicle
traffic for ten minutes at the beginning and end of the school day. This allows students
travelling by foot and by bike to exit the grounds safely first.
As can be seen in Fig 2, the white zigzags from the puffin crossing cover this entrance and thus
provide an excellent way to prevent traffic from stopping outside this entrance.
The second entrance is found further west along The Ridgeway and provides access to the
second car parking area on the school site. This entrance is shown in Fig 3 on the following
page. Cars, pedestrians and cyclists use the entrance. However, differing from the main
entrance, this ‘top’ entrance does not have separate access for pedestrians, and it is therefore
not a traffic-free entrance.
3
Fig 2
Fig 3
As can be seen in Fig 3, there are yellow zigzags and a ‘KEEP CLEAR’ sign that extend over
this entrance in the hope of preventing traffic from stopping outside or around this entrance.
The third entrance along The Ridgeway can be found further east, back past the main entrance
and further down the hill from the school. This entrance is a pedestrian only entrance, allowing
access to the school for those on foot. The entrance can be seen in Fig 4 on the following
page, showing it from the road, looking into the school site.
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Fig 4
This entrance was enhanced due to the impetus of the original Safer Routes to School initiative.
Fig 5 below shows the handrail and improved surfacing that was put in place thanks to this
initiative, on which the school spent between £1,200 and £1,500.
Fig 5
It is possible to see from Fig 5 that the work that the original initiative produced was successful
in implementing a structural change that benefited the school community by creating a safe,
traffic-free entrance.
A fourth entrance can be found along the eastern boundary of the school site. This entrance
leads off from a path that trails along the eastern edge of the school site, linking The Ridgeway
and Sandringham Crescent. The entrance can be seen in
Fig 6 on the following page.
5
Fig 6
The original work for the Safer Routes to School initiative enabled the resurfacing of the
pathway (as it was originally a mud track) and the installation of good lighting along the path.
This provides another safe access point, as this is another traffic-free entrance.
The fifth entrance is perhaps the least used entrance of all. It is located at the northern
boundary of the site along Sandringham Crescent. It is a turn-style type entrance and gives
access to the school site from the northern side. However, after entering the site through this
entrance, students then have to walk across the school playing fields. In adverse weather
conditions this can become a muddy task. The inconvenience of this entrance, although trafficfree, is why the entrance is the least used by Sandringham School students.
One improvement made along the site’s boundary with The Ridgeway was the introduction of
metal fencing. The original wooden fencing did not allow the school students to see through it
sufficiently. The introduction of metal fencing aimed to allow gaps through which students
entering or leaving the site could easily see if there were any cars approaching the entrance
that they would be accessing. The school spent £2,000 to build this fencing around the school
site.
The speed limit along The Ridgeway and Sandringham Crescent is 30 mph. However, due to
the relatively low amount of traffic on Sandringham Crescent, traffic tends to travel at speeds in
excess of the limit noted here. Furthermore, whilst the volume of traffic along The Ridgeway is
not particularly large, local residents, staff and parents have noted that there are often drivers
driving above the speed limit along the road.
One additional implementation was the creation of a sixth entrance to the school site (this is a
fourth entrance along The Ridgeway). This is a pedestrian-only, traffic-free entrance. It
provides safe access to the site for pedestrians coming from the western end of The Ridgeway
and has been welcomed as a safe new entrance to the site.
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Bus Routes
There is one dedicated education service, the E901 (which provides statutory transport for
students living beyond three miles, which is free to students below Year 12, and which is funded
by the local authority). There is also a public service, the S8/S9 that runs near to the school site
and heads towards St Albans town centre and the S3 which travels from St Albans town to
Marshalswick/Jersey Farm.
There is a bus bay outside the main entrance to the school with spaces for the bus to wait at the
end of the school day for students, so that they can board the buses safely. A member of staff
is also on hand to make sure that students are able to board the buses in an orderly and safe
fashion.
Hertfordshire’s ‘SaverCard’ also allows students aged 11 to 18 to qualify for a half fare.
The provision of bus stops outside the school on The Ridgeway is such that there should not be
a problem with timing or access to Sandringham School for any of its children to travel by public
transport.
Cycle Routes and Storage
Cycle lanes run along The Ridgeway and encourage safe travel by bicycle to and from
Sandringham School. A ‘tidal wave’ scheme encourages local residents not to park their cars
on the roads at certain times to allow Sandringham students clear access along the cycle lanes.
However, this scheme can be somewhat undermined by local residents who do not adhere to
the notices and block the cycle lanes. Fig 7 below shows a cycle lane along The Ridgeway.
Fig 7
7
Cycle sheds were also introduced as a result of the original work in 1996. The sheds were built
in 1997. They are covered and provide a combined capacity for 65 bicycles. The sheds are
located in high visibility areas and are popular with students for their design. The sheds are not
covered by CCTV. Figs 8 and 9 show the bicycle sheds.
Figs 8 and 9
Although they used to have one, the school does not currently have a cycle permit scheme.
This is to encourage students to cycle.
Parking
There are two main car parks found at the school. The first of these is located inside The
Ridgeway main entrance and can be seen in Fig 10 below.
Fig 10
As has already been discussed, this entrance is for staff parking, but is also utilised by children
to gain access to the school grounds. The white zigzag lines from the puffin crossing cover the
entrance to this car park, thus preventing cars from stopping to drop children. This car park has
a total of 50 spaces. The car park is in constant use and is therefore potentially dangerous to
any students also in this area. However, as mentioned earlier, the school does operate a tenminute hold back time that prevents traffic from entering or exiting the car park for ten minutes
at the beginning and end of each day.
8
The school has in the past spent £1,000 on introducing speed humps and speed restriction
signposting in the car park. Pictures of these can be seen below in
Figs 11 and 12. The introduction of these safety measures has helped to reduce traffic speeds
in the car park and has helped to improve safety in an area where school students are often
found.
In addition to this, a zebra crossing was introduced within the car park. The crossing leads from
the pedestrian entrance to the main car park, crossing the section of road where cars turn right
to enter into the main car park. The introduction of this zebra crossing provided a safe place to
cross for Sandringham School students and thus is a positive change. The crossing is shown
on page 11 in Fig 13.
Fig 11
9
Fig 12
Fig 13
The second main car park can be found at the western end of the school site and is known to
staff as the ‘top’ car park. Access to this car park is gained through the ‘top’ entrance as
discussed earlier in the plan. The car park has space for 42 cars and part of the car park is
shown in Fig 14 on the following page. Restrictions in this car park are not as necessary as the
restrictions that have been seen in the main car park as the school’s students use this car park
far less.
10
Fig 14
The current parking facilities in the Sandringham School site are therefore currently sufficient for
safety and for capacity. However, car usage amongst staff must be encouraged to be reduced.
Traffic Calming Features
Whilst there are currently no specific traffic-calming measures in place along The Ridgeway
there are a number of factors that attempt to calm the speed of traffic along the road. The main
way this is achieved is by the on-road signing that is apparent along The Ridgeway as traffic
approaches Sandringham School. The school warning sign is shown in Fig 15 below.
Fig 15
11
A speed restriction sign follows this sign on the road surface, shown below in Fig 16.
Fig 16
Other than these road markings there are no specific traffic-calming features along The
Ridgeway.
Signposting and Crossings
As we have seen in the previous section, signing is apparent on the road surface of The
Ridgeway, and thus helps to slow down traffic along this road. Furthermore there is an
abundance of signposting along The Ridgeway, the aim of which is to draw attention to the fact
that there is a school in the vicinity. This makes drivers aware of the presence of the school,
and will hopefully slow drivers down. The main signposting is the ‘gateway’ signs which alert
drivers to the schools proximity and at peak times flash to catch the driver’s attention further.
An example of this kind of signposting is shown in Fig 17 on the following page.
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Fig 17
Further signposting can be found along The Ridgeway to alert drivers to the puffin crossing that
is located outside the school’s main entrance. The sign attempts to alert drivers to the crossing
and to therefore reduce their speeds and is aimed at providing children with a safe crossing
point. Fig 18 below shows this sign.
The pelican crossing itself is also shown on the following page in Fig 19. This crossing was put
in place again as a measure introduced as a result of the Safer Routes to School initiative. The
crossing attempts to provide a safe route across The Ridgeway for Sandringham School
students.
Fig 18
13
Fig 19
As can be seen in Fig 19, the positioning of the puffin crossing also allows for there to be
parking restrictions along The Ridgeway. The white zigzags that extend from the puffin
crossing prevent drivers from parking or stopping within this area, thus making sure that anyone
crossing at this point has a clear view of the road that is not obstructed by parked cars.
The yellow zigzags that are found outside the school entrances further enhance parking
restrictions along The Ridgeway around the school site (and are shown in
Fig 20). These aim to prevent any traffic from stopping in the area. The ‘KEEP CLEAR’ sign
also prevents anyone from parking in this area and potentially blocking the view of pedestrians
crossing near this point. However, whilst the yellow zigzag is apparent, this does not
necessarily stop parents from dropping their children off here.
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Fig 20
The yellow zigzags are further enhanced by signposting (shown in Fig 21 below) preventing any
traffic from stopping by a school entrance between the stated times, which aims to reduce traffic
and improve the safety of students.
Fig 21
There are further parking restrictions along The Ridgeway, which attempt to implement the ‘tidal wave’
scheme introduced as a result of the earlier Safer Routes to School initiative as discussed earlier in the
plan. An example of the signposting for this scheme is shown below in Fig 22.
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Fig 22
Here it is possible to see that parking is restricted in this particular area between the hours of
8am and 9am. It is considered that, by restricting the parking at this time in this way, cyclists
will be able to have a clear cycle path to school. At the end of the school day the same system
is applied to the cycle lane on the other side of the road, with traffic prevented from parking in
the cycle lane for an hour at the end of the school day. However, this scheme is wholly reliant
on the goodwill of parents and local residents. They are encouraged not to park here during
these times, but the scheme is ruined if they do.
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The Surveys
Parents, staff and students were surveyed. Of the surveys that were sent out, there were 219 parent
responses, 971 student responses and 83 staff responses.
All of these surveys are critical for raising awareness about the plan and receiving support for any
initiatives taken.
Parent Surveys
Current Travel Pattern
The tables and Figs below illustrate how children get to and from school according to the surveys
returned by parents of Sandringham School students. Weather conditions are of course always a factor
in determining the figures that are received. Table 1 and Fig 23 illustrate the ways in which children
travel to school on a typical day, as noted by the parents of the children.
Table 1
Students Travel TO School
Walk
Car
Car share
Bus (PT)
School Bus
Cycle
Train
Tube
Other
Total
Number
%
62.07%
12.76%
6.21%
2.76%
11.72%
3.79%
0.00%
0.00%
0.69%
100.00%
180
37
18
8
34
11
0
0
2
290
Fig 23
Students' Modes of Transport TO School
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Walk
Car
Car
share
Bus
(PT)
School Cycle
Bus
Train
Tube
Other
17
Both table 2 and Fig 24 (below) highlight the responses that were made by the parents as to their children’s
normal mode of transport from school.
Table 2
Students Travel FROM School
Walk
Car
Car share
Bus (PT)
School bus
Cycle
Train
Tube
Other
Total
%
Number
67.93%
8.97%
3.10%
2.76%
12.41%
4.14%
0.00%
0.00%
0.69%
100.00%
197
26
9
8
36
12
0
0
2
290
Fig 24
Students' Modes of Transport FROM School
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Walk
Car
Car
Bus School Cycle Train Tube Other
share (PT)
Bus
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Parent Preference Results
Tables 3 and 4, and Figs 25 and 26 illustrate how parents think their child/ren would prefer to travel to
and from school. This information was obtained to determine which methods of transport
parents/children would be more willing to take if they could be encouraged that these were more viable
options.
Table 3
Students Preferred Transport TO School
Walk
Car
Car share
Bus (PT)
School bus
Cycle
Train
Tube
Other
Total
%
Number
49.12%
20.70%
7.02%
1.75%
10.53%
10.18%
0.00%
0.35%
0.35%
100.00%
140
59
20
5
30
29
0
1
1
285
Fig 25
Students' Preferred Mode of Transport TO School
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Walk
Car
Car
share
Bus
(PT)
School Cycle
Bus
Train
Tube
Other
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Table 4
Students Preferred Transport FROM
School
Walk
Car
Car share
Bus (PT)
School bus
Cycle
Train
Tube
Other
Total
%
51.23%
20.35%
5.61%
1.75%
10.18%
10.18%
0.00%
0.35%
0.35%
100.00%
Number
146
58
16
5
29
29
0
1
1
285
Fig 26
Students' Preferred Mode of Transport FROM School
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Walk
C ar
Car
share
Bus
(PT)
School
Bus
Cycle
Train
Tube
Other
Parent Survey Commentary
 There are good levels of students who walk.
 Bus use and cycling could be better.
 There is significant parent interest in their child/ren cycling to school and using
the bus service.
 There is a reasonable interest in a car-sharing scheme.
 There is excellent support for the travel plan initiative.
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Student Survey
The following data reports responses from the students at Sandringham School who
were asked to fill out a survey to determine their modes of travel to and from school.
Summary
Table 5
School
Summary
Male
Female
Totals
School
Summary
Male %
Female %
Walk
323
299
Cycle
70
6
622
76
Walk
63
65
Cycle
14
1
Bus
Train
32
45
1
0
Car/Taxi
86
109
77
1
195
971
0
0
Car/Taxi
17
24
Total
100
100
Bus
Train
6
10
Total
512
459
Fig 27
21
Key Stage 5
Table 6
KS5
Summary
Walk
Cycle
Bus
Train
Car/Taxi
Total
Male %
57
7
4
0
32
100
Female %
32
0
18
0
50
100
Train
1
0
Car/Taxi
17
26
Total
100
100
Fig 28
Key stage 4
Table 7
KS4
Summary
Male %
Female %
Walk
63
65
Cycle
12
1
Bus
7
9
Fig 29
22
Key Stage 3
Table 8
KS3
Summary
Walk
Cycle
Bus
Train
Car/Taxi
Total
Male %
64
16
6
0
14
100
Female %
74
2
8
0
16
100
Fig 30
Commentary
A recent questionnaire shows that the numbers of students walking to school is
steadily increasing based on the previous survey (2005)
 The numbers of students travelling to school by car is decreasing.
 Younger students (KS3) are more likely to cycle to school than older students
(KS4/5).
 The preferred mode of travel is walking.
Sixth Form (KS5)
 Sixth Form are not encouraged to drive to school.
 The numbers walking to school has increased on previous surveys, and the
numbers driving to school has decreased.
 Due to parking restrictions around the school, parking is very difficult.
 Sixth Form are not allowed to park on the school site.
Pupil’s reasons for current form of transport
The next question on the survey was aimed at determining the reasons why the
students at Sandringham School travelled to school in the way that they do. Table 9
and Fig 31 on the next page show the response to this question.
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Table 9
Why travel to school like this
Easy/Quick
Safest
Too far for other
Don't know/other
Other
%
Number
75.25%
11.64%
12.37%
6.55%
7.86%
517
80
85
45
54
Fig 31
Why Do Students Travel In Such Ways?
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Easy/Quick
Safest
Too far for
other
Don't Know
Other
Other
From these results it is obvious to see that the overwhelming reason for the pupil’s
decision to travel to school by any particular means of transport is governed by how easy
or quick that form of transport is, with 75% of Sandringham School students rating this as
a factor for their choice of transport. Whilst there was a limited view on other factors
being important in travel to school choice, it must be noted that speed and ease is by far
the most important factor. From this we can deduce that it is paramount to make healthy
forms of travel to Sandringham School easy and quick. For example, the walking route to
school should be made as pedestrian friendly as possible so that the route is as quick and
easy as possible. This will make a healthy transport option appealing to students and will
improve the manner in which the students at this school will travel to and from it.
From the results we can see that the numbers of those who walk to school has increased
considerably and this is something that can be drawn upon to promote school based
initiatives.
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Staff survey
The staff survey aimed to find out the travel habits of staff at Sandringham School so
that healthier forms of travel might be encouraged within the staff. Tables 10 and 11 and
Figs 32 and 33 show how staff travel to and from the school site.
Table 10
Staff travel to and from school
Walk
Car
Car share
Bus
Cycle
Other
Total
%
Number
7%
83.7%
2.3%
1.2%
2.3%
3.5
100.00%
6
72
2
1
2
3
86
Fig 32
The staff survey showed that 84% of staff drive to school. Reasons staff gave for driving
to work included:
 Do not live in St Albans.
 Use car to pick up their own children.
 Need car during the day to attend meetings at different locations.
 Driving is quicker than taking public transport.
 Need car to transport school work to and from home.
25
How far on average Staff travel to School
Table 11
Distance travelled to school
%
Count
Less than 1 mile
19.50%
17
Between 1 and 3 miles
23%
20
Between 4 and 6 miles
12.60%
11
Between 7 and 10 miles
19.50%
17
Over 10 miles
25.30%
22
Total
100%
87
Fig 33
Staff Car Sharing Interest
Whilst there is a large percentage of staff that drive to school, there is only a small
number of those who car share (2.3% of those who answered the survey). The survey
aimed to ascertain how many of the staff would be interested in car sharing, and the
results are shown in Table 12.
Table 12
Car Sharing
%
Count
Staff Interested
30.40%
24
Staff not interested
69.60%
55
100%
79
Totals
From the results we can see that 30% of the staff would be interested in car sharing,
which is a relatively encouraging percentage. However, it is important to note that with
the differing starting and finishing times of all members of staff, a realistic car-sharing
scheme between staff may be difficult to achieve.
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School Objectives and Targets
Planned initiatives
Action
Target Date
By Whom
The introduction of a travel plan notice board
A travel plan summary leaflet
‘Design a Poster’ competition
Make the school travel plan available to staff,
parents and students on the website
Monitor ‘Travel To School Data’ regularly
Parents to be encouraged to car share
Staff to be encouraged to car share
Add CCTV coverage to existing cycle storage
To encourage Year 6 students to walk to school
during the transition meeting with both students
and parents
Participate in National Bike Week and register and
participate in Free your Feet
End March 2013
End March 2013
End March 2013
End December 2012
MPN/RIF
MPN/RIF/SCW
RIF
JBE
Repeated surveys
December 2012
Newsletter
March 2013
End June 2013
RIF/MPN
RIF/MPN/LG
RIF/MPN/LG
MPN/RIF
RIF/
Year 7 PD
End June 2013
RIF/MPN
Names denoted by initials in the last column above:
RIF = Richard Found
LG = Leadership Group
Year 7 PD = Year 7 Performance Director - Rich Davis
MPN = Martin Petersen
SCW = Scott Whorrod
JBE = James Belmont
Management of School Travel Plan
The intention is that this will be a living document that will be reviewed and updated
annually.
The School Travel Plan will be reviewed and monitored by:
Martin Petersen – Campus Manager/School Travel Plan Coordinator.
Richard Found – Assistant Headteacher.
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