Parents call for better parking

0:00am Fri Oct 03, 2008

The parents of a boy who was knocked unconscious outside his school say there could be a more serious accident if poor parking continues.

Ellis Hunter (9) of Winthorpe Road, Newark, was in collision with a car outside Bishop Alexander Primary School, Wolsey Road, Newark.

His parents, Miss Kelly Hunter (30) and Mr Sean Cutbill (39) want something to be done to stop cars parking immediately outside the school.

Mr Cutbill said Ellis was hurt after stepping out from behind a parked vehicle and being hit by a car.

He was thrown into the air and landed on the bonnet of the car.

He was unconscious for two minutes but suffered only superficial injuries to the left side of his body.

He was saved from more serious injury by a rucksack he was wearing containing a sports kit.

Ellis had earlier competed in a community triathlon at The Grove School, Balderton.

He was only given the rucksack, which was split open by the impact, because his kit would not fit into his usual, smaller gym bag.

His parents found out about Ellis’s accident when someone knocked on their door, as he walks the short distance to his home after school on his own.

Mr Cutbill, a painter and decorator, said: “We flew up there as fast as we could. We saw two people bending over him and didn’t know what we were going to find.”

They saw that Ellis’s left ear was bleeding and feared the worst.

Ellis was taken to Lincoln County Hospital after the accident on Wednesday of last week and later discharged.

Mr Cutbill said there was strong feeling among parents over the parking situation outside the school.

“Everybody who stopped me said something has got to be done,” he said.

He said a campaign to try to resolve the problem had been going on for around 20 years.

There are no yellow lines outside the school and cars park along at least half the length of the road, on both sides, at the start and end of the school day.

Miss Hunter said she could not understand why parents had to park outside the school.

“Children’s lives are more important than parking a car,” she said.

“Now this has happened, something might actually get done.

“What is it going to take — for a child to actually die?”

She said it was parents’ responsibility to make sure the road outside the school was safe for children.

Pupils were reassured in an assembly the day after the accident that Ellis had not been seriously injured. In assembly on Monday Ellis’s torn rucksack was shown to pupils make them aware of the potential dangers outside the school.

A spokesman for Nottinghamshire County Council said: “The county council’s road safety team has visited Bishop Alexander Primary School and is working with staff to update the School Travel Plan, which addresses improving safety around the school.

“A new dropped crossing facility with guard rails will be placed outside the new pedestrian entrance to the school, in addition zig-zag markings will be installed at the pedestrian entrance to prevent car parking and to keep the road clear for pedestrians to cross.

“The school regularly informs parents and children about road safety and has received additional road safety educational resources and training such as cycling.”

The spokesman said the improvements were agreed before Ellis’s accident.