Surrey school bans pupils from walking and cycling to class
THAT Olympics Legacy in action: Betchworth school, Surrey, has decided to ban children from cycling and walking to school. The North Downs Primary School says its Betchworth and Leigh bases will be “driving only” from September.
No Team GB golds for walking, but cycling is a sport the nation excels at.
The Primary School is located on three village sites in the “neighbouring rural communities of Betchworth, Brockham & Leigh“. The school has ruled that getting between the bases is too dangerous. Only cars can navigate the hazards, like roads, people and dragons.
According to Google Maps, the distance between Brockham Primary School and North Downs Primary is…125ft. Brockham Primary School to Leigh Primary School is trip of 2.8 miles.
It’s all, apparently, to do with cost cutting. The Dorking Advertiser reports:
The money-saving move by the school will see classes across the three sites cut from seven to six while also axing a teacher post. The Betchworth school will see pupil numbers cut from 44 to 30, while the Leigh site will increase from 43 to 60. All children starting at the school in September will be moved around all three sites before they reach their eighth birthday.
One other expense the school will have to pay for is an adjustment to the prospectus, which tells us that it aims to:
Develop confident young people who are willing to take risks and rise to challenges whilst taking responsibility for their choices and actions, in preparation for playing an active role in a diverse and ever changing world.
The school then adopts the language of X Factor contestants:
Our curriculum is just one step in the learning journey for our children
It’s a journey. One you must take by car. Or you could get a driver:
Surrey County Council has said it would pay for this taxi service for Year One students travelling to Leigh.
So, stick your five-year-old in a minicab. And wave goodbye.
One parent notes:
“It would be a national scandal if a school situated within view of the 2012 Box Hill Olympic Cycling Race introduced a policy that forces pupils into cars.”
Maybe that’s the school’s idea, to create an issue that makes those cost-cutting exercises look ludicrous?
Posted: 26th, February 2013 | In: Reviews Comment | TrackBack | Permalink
