Politicians back Breckland School road safety campaign

A Breckland School student met with local politicians today, Friday 15th May, about proposals aimed at improving road safety outside the school.

Louisa Silkstone held discussions with Nick Timothy, Member of Parliament for West Suffolk, and Tim Kent, the newly elected Suffolk County Councillor for Brandon, to outline her ideas for making the road outside the school safer for pupils and families. She was joined at the meeting by her friends Noemi and Sarah, who are also supporting the initiative.

The campaign, which was launched by Louisa earlier this year, is calling for the speed limit outside the school to be reduced from 30mph to 20mph, alongside improvements to make crossing the road safer for students travelling to and from school.

The discussion focused on the next steps, gathering support, and identifying what evidence would be needed to help move the proposals forward. Both Mr Timothy and Mr Kent backed the ideas and offered advice on how they could progress further.

As part of the plans, evidence will now be gathered during school pick-up times and passed on to Suffolk County Council alongside a petition which has already received more than 200 signatures.

The meeting was organised by school governor Mr Hawkins, with Mrs Irlam and Mrs Taylor also attending in support of the students and their efforts.

Mr Chapman, headteacher at Breckland School, said: “As a school, we are extremely proud of Louisa for raising this matter and for engaging the student leadership team in developing an appropriate response.

“Her collaborative approach, and the manner in which she has led and embedded this work across our community, reflect exemplary leadership.”

You can sign the petition here