Let parents decide if children ride to school
IT CAN only be good news that the Vale School is seeking to encourage pupils to cycle to school. Of course only a few years ago all the primary schools had a school 'rule' which stated that children were not permitted to ride to school unless they had passed their cycling proficiency test. Unfortunately many parents actually believed that head teachers had some sort of say on how their children travelled to school. Rather than perhaps even cycling with their children, they resigned themselves to other travel arrangements such as the car. I was told by a retired head teacher that although the rule was totally unenforceable, it was common amongst the island schools and was therefore promoted because – well, just because it was.
How this ridiculous situation was allowed to continue over so many years is beyond belief. First that teachers (or their civil servant colleagues) considered it appropriate to meddle with decisions which should undoubtedly be made by parents. Little Billy may have been riding on the road for years with his parents and have excellent road sense. No matter. He wasn't allowed to ride to school until he had passed his cycling proficiency. Little Jonny who then scraped through the test having just got a bike for Christmas was a nightmare on the roads once he had managed to get his little triangular badge. Exaggeration, but you can see my point perhaps.
I am keen to know why and when this 'rule' was introduced and who decided it was a good idea. More importantly, is it still in force or do we now trust parents to make their own arrangements?
Is the Committee for Education, Sport & Culture now committed to the education and health of Guernsey children or are they still placing this barrier in the way of those parents who have taken the time to cycle with their children and teach them road sense?
Of course the cycling proficiency test or any equivalent test is a great idea and has excellent value in the reinforcement of good road safety among children. It just shouldn't be used as a tool to dissuade responsible parents from making their own decisions. These decisions are based on their own knowledge of their child's road sense and an appropriate route to school etc. It's just a bit of common sense, isn't it? Let's hope common sense has prevailed.
ANDRE QUEVATRE,
Address withheld.
Editor's footnote: Alan Brown, director of Education, responds: Education Services, alongside colleagues across the community, recognise the benefits of encouraging young people to cycle to school. The recent Guernsey Young People's survey showed that 43% of primary school pupils report that they 'actively' travel to school (walking/cycling/scooting) and, as part of our initiatives to help young people be more active, we would like to see those numbers increase.
One response has been the expansion of the well-established 'PE in Schools' programme to provide cycling proficiency training in Guernsey primary schools. Arrangements are being made to enable Bikeability training to levels one and two to be delivered in local schools. This will provide practical skills and understanding of how to cycle on today's roads and help to give everyone the skills and confidence for all types of cycling.
It is ultimately for a parent or carer to decide how their child travels to and from school. A few schools do stipulate that children cannot cycle unless they have taken the cycling proficiency test. Schools are best-placed to make that decision based on their knowledge of their pupils and the environment around the school site. Such a decision will not have been taken lightly as schools take seriously their responsibility to encourage young people to lead healthy, active lives and clearly walking and cycling to school is a great way to increase fitness.
However, that has to be balanced against increased car usage on the island and the risk that this poses to young people as they travel to school.
There are some great examples of how parents have embraced the idea of active travel to school. One example is the regular 'cycle trains' introduced at St Martin's Primary School where parents cycle with a small group of children to and from school, helping to build their cycling confidence and road sense. Education Services would encourage parents of children at any other schools to consider setting up similar initiatives.
