Walking Bus is driving change at West Croft School

West Croft School in Bideford has launched its second Walking Bus route with the help of Devon County Council.

A Walking Bus is a safe and fun way for groups of children to walk to school together, accompanied by adult volunteers who receive road safety training and insurance cover from the County Council.

As with a normal bus, the Walking Bus follows a fixed route picking up children from bus stops at set times along the route.

Devon County Council’s Walking Bus scheme is proving a great success at West Croft School. Having only started their first walking bus in January this year, the addition of a second route means that more than 30 children at the school are making use of the Walking Buses.

The response from pupils at West Croft School has been extremely positive. One said: “The Walking Bus is safe, fun and great exercise. You get support from teachers, and you can discuss your worries on the way into school.”

Katie Ebsworthy, West Croft School’s Walking Bus Co-ordinator, said: “Thanks to the free support and guidance from Devon County Council’s Road Safety Team we now have two Walking Buses at our school on two different routes. It is brilliant and the children love it. We have children from all school years from Reception to Year 5 and they learn about traffic safety within their own neighbourhood.

“The physical exercise means they arrive at school alert and are ready to learn. The children chat and laugh with each other and also with the staff who volunteer to help the ‘bus drivers.’ The Walking Bus has also had a positive impact on attendance, helping those who may feel anxious to come into school. It reassures the parents and carers that their child is getting to school safely and on time.

“Also, we are finding that the adult volunteers are also benefiting from the physical exercise too, so it is a win-win. As we are a Devon County Council maintained school the scheme is covered by the Council’s insurance so we’d encourage any school to take up the Walking Bus Scheme.”

Councillor Stuart Hughes, Devon County Council Cabinet Member with responsibility for walking and cycling, said: “We’re pleased that West Croft School and many other Devon schools have taken up our offer of free guidance and training for the Walking Bus initiative. It’s great to see that it’s proving successful for them.

“We know that the benefits from active travel are huge and a recent study showed that children who walk or cycle to school demonstrate increased levels of concentration in class. Walking Buses also enable children to develop a sense of road safety and can help reduce traffic around schools which improves air quality.”

For more information visit https://www.devon.gov.uk/roads-and-transport/safe-travel/road-safety/schools/walking-bus/