Springfield Primary School - School Streets Scheme

What is a School Streets Scheme?

It is a temporary restriction on motorised traffic at school drop-off and pick-up times in term time only, on streets outside a school. The scheme is a community-based approach, which aims to:

• cut down on traffic and parking pressures outside schools
• encourage walking and cycling to school
• make the streets outside schools safer at the start and end of the day
• improve air quality and create a more pleasant environment for everyone

These schemes put children and families first, to keep them safe and healthy by encouraging walking, push scooting, and cycling. We work with school staff, parents, carers and pupils to encourage the use of alternative ways of getting to school, e.g. Park and Stride, Walking Buddys, so that school communities can help to tackle air pollution, poor health and road danger reduction.

You can find more information about School Streets Schemes and watch a short video here.

Background to the Springfield Primary School Scheme

School staff, parents, and pupils in years 5 and 6 took part in an Active Travel survey to help us identify what stops people walking, scooting, or cycling to school, and what would help them to do so.

Here is what they said:

Parents (141 responses):

• barriers to active travel include distance from home, safety of route, need parent shelter and more cycle storage at school
• if barriers were removed, highly motivated to encourage children to walk, cycle or scoot to school
• need a Park and Stride area not too far from school - unable to use Turnhams Farm Hall
• travel to work following the school drop-off in the morning

Staff (26 responses):

• too much to carry
• no staff cycle storage
• live too far away

Pupils (61 responses):

• I want to walk or cycle to school
• because I am not ready in the morning, we end up driving to school instead of walking

We also held a public meeting on Tuesday, 18 March 2025 from 7pm to 8.30pm at Springfield Primary School, Barton Road, Tilehurst, Reading, Berkshire, RG31 5NJ. Local ward members, council officers, and the Head Teacher of Springfield Primary answered questions about the scheme, and the supporting work being introduced.  You can view/download a summary of the discussion points here [247KB]

What we can do in partnership with the school (depending on available budget and staffing resources):

• regularly monitor the road outside the school during school drop-off and pick-up times
• install equipment to monitor the speed, volume and type of the vehicles using the road outside the school
• raise awareness of driver speeds and presence of children crossing
• install a parent shelter to protect parents waiting for their children on wet days, although there is limited space in school grounds
• provide support for a voluntary School Crossing Patrol
• provide more cycle storage at the school
• develop a Park and Stride area in proximity of the school

What the School Streets Scheme will look like

Access to the school via Barton Road will be restricted for one hour in the morning and one hour in the afternoon. For the first six months, the scheme will operate as a sign-only initiative, in line with government guidance. This trial period will allow us to assess how well the scheme is working and whether additional measures are needed.

If evidence shows that drivers are not complying with the restrictions, we may consider introducing camera enforcement (ANPR) to support the scheme and help keep everyone safe. If enforcement cameras (ANPR) are introduced, and you have questions about registering your vehicle, please visit our information page. You can find information about applying for a Blue Badge online, or by emailing parking@westberks.gov.uk

All School Streets Schemes are implemented using an Experimental Traffic Management/Regulation Order (ETO). This means that as the local highway authority, we have powers to enforce "moving traffic offences", e.g. ignoring road restrictions. It may be necessary to introduce traffic cameras to monitor traffic outside the school and issue a Penalty Charge Notice (PCN) or fine to those entering the restricted areas during the school drop-off and pick-up times, applicable Monday to Friday during school term-time only. It operates for approximately 45-60 minutes. If drivers are issued a PCN because they passed a School Streets sign and entered a restricted area at a restricted time, they can reduce the cost of the fine by completing an online educational course that will help them understand what School Streets signs mean. 

The Scheme will be introduced around the roads to Springfield Primary School for the start of term on Monday, 2 June 2025. The roads affected are: Barton Road, Highbury Road, Jenner Walk, Rutherford Walk access road, Wiltshire Walk access road and Woodbridge Road.

Click on the link below to view a map of the affected roads and potential position of the signs.

Map showing the affected roads and potential position of the signs [201KB]

For more general information on school street schemes, please visit our webpage

Why we want your views

The School Street scheme will be reviewed six to nine months after it's been installed, so it's important that we understand your experiences, how the scheme is affecting you, whether it is working and any suggestions for further improvements you think would be helpful.

How to take part

If you'd like to tell us about your experience of the Schools Street Scheme at Springfield Primary School, please complete and return our feedback survey by Tuesday, 2 December 2025. It should take about five minutes, and you can complete it more than once if you have more than one experience to share.

Complete our survey

If you have any questions about the scheme, please email activetravel@westberks.gov.uk and you can find our dedicated active travel page here.

What happens next

It's important that we understand your experiences, how the scheme is affecting you, and if you have any suggestions for further improvements. The feedback will be collected for six to nine months, and then we'll review the scheme to see whether it's working and decide whether we need to make any changes or make it permanent as it is.