The public footpath outside of the school – heading down toward Grange Lane – is again being flooded during wet weather and continues to present problems for hundreds of children walking to and from school.
This has been an on-going problem which Staffordshire County Council periodically come and ‘fix’ by putting in a French-style drain. However, this is wholly inadequate, never resolves matters, and the more expensive system of a proper drainage system is never applied.
This leaves children to either walk through a shin-deep quagmire, balance around the steeply sloped banks that rise up either side of the path and risk falling, or walking on the road amidst the heavy traffic and risk being hit. The same problems face those seeking to access the social services family support facilities or the community leisure centre.
The problem has been reported to Staffordshire County Council and they appear to be planning to act – hopefully before the warmer weather comes. You can find out more about their work on this problem here.
We have been contacted by our local District Councillor, Paul Ray, who has expressed his wish for this issue to be addressed and for us to look into it. We have already ensured it has been reported and we have also contacted our County Councillor, Janice Silvester-Hall, to ask for her support. In turn, we have asked Councillor Ray for his active support as we are hoping his influence can get either the County Council or Parish Council to act sooner rather than later.
Matt Allman, Headteacher, said: “We have liaised with Staffordshire Police about the traffic congestion outside our school as we know Eastern Avenue is a busy road at the best of times, never mind the start and end of the school day. Even so, we have a situation where a new, much-needed £800,000 traffic light / crossing system has been put up just 50 metres down from the school after a desperately tragic road death, but we have children having to skip around the same road as the pathway is too flooded to navigate each winter. We know our elected representatives share our and parents’ concerns and will do all they can to help bring a swift resolution.”
