‘Uncomfortable’ meeting leads to change of plan over Local Highways Initiative bid outside Wisbech school
An ‘uncomfortable’ meeting with parents and school leaders has led to a change of plan for Wisbech Town Council.
At its meeting in October, the council agreed on three projects for this year’s Local Highways Initiative (LHI) bids due to be submitted to the county council next month.
Town and parish councils can put forward LHI bids once a year with the county council providing funding for schemes that meet its criteria.
Wisbech Town Council’s schemes included bad parking on Elm Road by parents dropping off students at the Thomas Clarkson Academy, measures to tackle drivers turning the wrong way down Wilberforce Road off Norwich Road, and problem parking on a grass area outside Meadowgate Academy.
However, at Monday’s night’s monthly meeting Cllr Sam Hoy who had suggested the Meadowgate scheme, where she wanted to see bollards installed to stop parking on the grass, said she had changed her mind.
She said following the previous meeting and publicity of the proposed scheme she had been contacted by Meadowgate Academy.
Cllr Hoy said: “I had an interesting, and if I’m honest, and bit uncomfortable meeting, with the school.”
She said there were objections to the proposals and added: “To be honest I was looking at this from the residents' point of view and not the parents.
“We say parents should walk their children to school, but many of the children going to Meadowgate can’t walk and their parents need to be able to park as close as possible.
“I know parking on the grass is not ideal, but if we move forward with the LHI we are unlikely to get it because there will be objections, therefore I’m going to withdraw the suggestion, which means we have an opportunity to put another scheme forward.”
A scheme suggested at the previous meeting was for improvements including double yellow lines to stop bad parking in Thurlow Close and it was unanimously agreed that they would put that forward for the LHI instead of the Meadowgate scheme.
