Renewed calls for lollipop person after “close call” outside primary school

A concerned mother has called on the council to bring back the school crossing patrol outside Blackwood Primary School after a child was nearly hit by a car.

The incident was described as a “near miss” by the school, which sent a frustrated email to concerned parents, stating it has “no jurisdiction” over the road.

Donna Jones, a parent and child minder, contacted Caerphilly Observer on Friday February 9 to say that a child was almost hit by a reversing car outside of the school during the early morning rush.

Speaking to Caerphilly Observer about the latest incident, Ms Jones said: “It’s terrible up here. People can’t cross, and when they do they’re having to weave in and out of cars.

“We have mothers on the road with prams because cars are parked on double yellow lines; I dread coming here each day.

“We were lucky today, the car stopped in time, but you feel like something is definitely going to happen soon.”

The school formerly had a lollipop lady, but after she retired in January 2022, the council announced it would not be continuing the service despite a petition of more than 200 people calling for a replacement.

In an assessment, the council said the school “failed” to reach the threshold for a lollipop person.

The school issued a statement after the “close call”, which read: “We had a very upsetting near miss this morning involving a pupil and dangerous vehicle outside our school.

“We can assure you we share your concerns and frustrations in relation to our lack of lollipop school crossing patrol and the consistent illegal parking when dropping off and collecting children.

“We have no jurisdiction over the road outside of our school site and encourage all concerns to be reported to the council.”

Blackwood councillor Kevin Etheridge has campaigned for the return of a patrol since it ended. He said: “I think the whole situation needs to be re-evaluated.

“It’s currently a free-for-all up there. The council needs to review the process in which it decides where a patrol should go, as ultimately we’re talking about the safety of children here.

“There are two busy junctions near the school, it’s a matter of time before a bad accident or worse a fatality was to happen there.

“I’ve got the full backing of the school and parents so I’ll be making a point of bringing this back up to the people in charge.”

Caerphilly County Borough Council has been asked for a comment.