School Streets

Image: Paul Gapper

School Streets is an initiative that is making a real difference to the air quality around schools. We have campaigned on School Streets since 2019, when we contacted 300 schools in illegally polluted areas across London to raise awareness with teachers and parents about the scheme. We set up a Facebook group to facilitate the interest generated across the country, and continue to talk to and empower parents to campaign for the scheme at their own school.

School Streets progress in London

Prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, 25 boroughs in London had implemented School Streets, or were planning to. Croydon and Islington were leading the charge with 13 schemes in place, closely followed by Hackney, Southwark, Camden and Greenwich.

Our travel landscape has changed due to the pandemic. Reduced public transport and the possibility that a shift to private car use would cause a rise in emissions and congestion highlighted a need for cycling and walking to be prioritised. The Government’s May 2020 statutory guidance and emergency funding put the emphasis on active travel and enabled local authorities to implement temporary measures to reallocate road space and ease the pressure on the roads. This meant that many more School Streets were created quickly, as not only do they restrict motor vehicle use around schools, they enable social distancing by allowing pupils to walk in the road. As of July 2023, almost 600 School Streets were in place across London, with more on the way, which is an incredible leap from the 80-odd schemes that were in place beforehand.

School Streets outside London

From June 2022, local authorities outside London were able to apply to Government for the powers to be able to enforce School Streets with automatic number plate recognition cameras. More and more School Streets are being planned across England, and we look forward to seeing this scheme go from strength to strength.