Primary pupils making strides to get more active

Living Streets Kells
Living Streets Kells
18 November 2022

Children in a Low Fell school were joined by special guests to celebrate the strides they are taking to get more active on the journey to school.

Kells Lane Primary School pupils were joined by Lord Michael Bates, a former pupil at the school and now President of Living Streets, the UK charity for everyday walking.

Lord Michael Bates joined the pupils on their walk to school in Low Fell, Gateshead, and heard first-hand about the benefits they experience from getting active on the school journey.

Kells Lane Primary School takes part in WOW - the walk to school challenge from Living Streets. WOW is a pupil-led initiative where children self-report how they get to school every day using the interactive WOW Travel Tracker. Pupils who walk, wheel, cycle or scoot at least once a week for a month are rewarded with a badge.

Children from Kells Lane have also taken part in filming for new road safety videos produced by Gateshead Council, to help keep them and their friends safe.

A generation ago, 70 per cent of primary school aged children walked to school, now it's less than half. However, in WOW schools, walking rates typically increase by 23 per cent with a 30 per cent reduction in cars driving to the school gates.

Nationally, 43 per cent of 5-10 year olds are driven to school. However, just nine per cent of journeys recorded on the WOW Travel Tracker by pupils at Kells Lane Primary school are car trips all the way to the school gates.

Strider, Living Streets' mascot, joined the pupils and Lord Michael Bates on the walk to school before leading them in a celebration assembly.  

Lord Michael Bates, President, Living Streets said:

"I am very proud that my old school, Kells Lane, is working really hard to get active on the school run. It's great to come back here after fifty years to join them and hear about the difference WOW is making to their health and happiness and our planet."

Councillor John McElroy, cabinet member for the environment and transport at Gateshead Council, said:

"It's great to hear about the impact this project has had on journeys to school. When the national average is 43% of journeys by car, it's impressive that Kells Lane has just 9% of all journeys by car to the school gates.

"We work with lots of schools now who understand the value of children being active, and how it's just not sustainable to have so many cars all arriving at the same time.

"It's safer and healthier for everyone if we see children walking and wheeling to school whenever possible."

A total of 51% of school pupils in Gateshead now travel to school by sustainable travel (2021/22 Hands Up survey)

The council's 'Be Cool' toolkit is helping even more children make journeys by sustainable travel.

Gateshead also has a growing number of schools gaining national Modeshift STARS accreditation to recognise their efforts to reduce car use and promote active and sustainable travel.


 

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