CATSHILL parents were celebrating yesterday after Worcestershire County Council overturned a decision to remove the lollipop lady from outside the middle school.
Now, instead of the initial proposal, the crossing patrol warden will be re-located in between Catshill Middle and Catshill First Schools so she can serve both.
The Standard was contacted earlier this week by parents concerned their children’s lives would be put at risk in September as the lollipop lady had been told she would be finishing on Friday.
We took up the issue with the authority, almost 400 signatures were collected on an online petition between Monday and yesterday and the councillor for the area Shirley Webb had vowed to do all she could to find a solution.
An overjoyed Rebecca Critcher described the news as ‘amazing’.
Lead campaigner Helen Cross told The Standard: “I am absolutely overwhelmed – the safety of the children in the village is paramount.
“I have children at both the first and middle schools so it’s perfect for me and I know it will also be for many others.
“Everyone here is ecstatic with the decision.”
Coun Lucy Hodgson, Worcestershire County Council cabinet member with responsibility for communities, said: “The safety of our children and young people getting to and from schools in this county is really important to us.
“We had proposed to remove the crossing patrol from outside Catshill Middle School as there is a zebra crossing there already.
“However, we have since assessed another location close by which serves both Catshill First and Catshill Middle School and we are going to relocate the existing patrol to this new location.
“We have listened to feedback from the crossing patrol herself, the local councillor and also the wider community, and the new location will be trialled from the start of the new school year in September for a term to establish whether it meets the criteria for a permanent site.”
Coun Webb said: “It’s a great result.
“We will also be working with the school to make the road safer and hopefully the trial period will be made permanent.”
