Parents fight to keep Beeston Primary School crossing warden

Parents of children at Beeston Primary School are up in arms after receiving a text on Monday (2 September 2024) stating that Leeds City Council had informed the school that there would no longer be a crossing warden at the school.

Sasha Watson, a parent governor at the school, said:

“Like many other parents I was shocked to hear the news, which seemed to have come completely out of the blue and with no explanation. So too was Deborah Chapman, our wonderful lollypop lady, who only learned of the news that she was out of a job when she was inundated by messages from concerned parents.”

Many parents and local residents promptly took to signing a petition, and emailing Leeds City Council to ask that her position be kept, but replies from the council have caused some confusion by stating that it was the decision of the Beeston Primary not to retain the service. In response to the petition Richard Jackson, Head of Passenger Services stated on X (formerly Twitter) that “nobody has been sacked options have been given to the school for the service to continue.”

Sasha Watson continued:

“Whilst this is true, it doesn’t paint a full picture of the circumstances. On Monday morning Beeston Primary School received an email which explained that due to budget cuts Leeds City Council are no longer willing to fund a crossing attendant, and they provided an option for the school to pay £5000 to maintain the service and incur full liability for any accidents. If the School were unable or unwilling to pay the fee then Deborah would be moved to a different school out of the area. Due to financial constraints Beeston Primary were had to face the tough decision whether to take money from an already stretched budget intended for our children’s education to fund a service not on school grounds. They decided that they could not possibly afford it.

“There is no doubt that the road outside Beeston Primary is unsafe. During drop off and pick up times the road is packed not only with cars shuttling children to school but also people travelling to work in a hurry. Deborah has recently taken to carrying a camera to capture a picture of those who try to sneak past her or who shout and swear at her as she stands to protect over three hundred children. Nonetheless, she is always there with a smile, ready to greet children as they head towards the school gates. As Parent Governor I cannot overstate the value she brings to our community not only by keeping our children safe, which is of utmost importance, but also by providing a familiar and friendly face to children who might not otherwise feel quite so enthusiastic at the start of a school day.

“At the moment Deborah remains in post but soon Beeston Primary will be without a crossing attendant. If, like me, you wish for her to remain at Beeston Primary School please sign the petition to Leeds City Council below and email your local Councillors”

www.change.org/p/reinstate-deborah-chapman-as-school-crossing-guard-at-beeston-primary-school

Cllr Andrew Scopes (Labour, Beeston & Holbeck) and Chair of Governors at the school commented:

“Getting to school safely is of upmost importance, especially as we continue to encourage children to walk to school. Debra, the lollipop lady, has for many years helped keep our children safe crossing the road to Beeston Primary School. Unfortunately, the communications with parents hasn’t been clear or helpful. I will work with the School and Council to see if it is possible to continue to fund this role, but we do need to recognise that both the School and the Council have saving requirements that need to be met.”

South Leeds Life understands that Leeds City Council had asked the school to issue the following text to parents:

“After a recent audit of our school crossing patrol provision it became apparent that the crossing for our school doesn’t meet the criteria to keep the crossing warden due to the fact that there is a Zebra crossing, this means that the crossing is at risk of being disbanded. The school and the council are looking at other options to see if there could be funding to continue with a decision likely to be made in early 2025 on the future of the crossing.”