Could a simple safety campaign in Northern Ireland be inspiration for the rest of the UK? Ballymoney Police certainly hope so as they look to tackle problem parking near primary schools.
Ticketing offenders
The two week plan looks to have police on hand outside of primary schools monitoring motorists. Those that park, obstructing pavements, will receive a notice. The notice will inform the driver that repeated obstructing would result in a fixed penalty.
The campaign, while short, will help local parents and residents access schools easier on foot. Given that primary age children can be very vulnerable near roads, it is a huge step towards keeping them safe. No parent would wish to be forced to walk on the road with a child due to inconsiderate parking.
Protecting children
Young children are vulnerable. A simple fact of school age children is they are not yet fully developed. Keeping them safe from blunt force trauma such as being struck by any road faring vehicle is essential. This could be by not only cars but by motorbikes and cyclists too.
Parking near a school does require some level of common sense. While it is the motorists fault if any child suffers an injury because of a collision, obstructing the pavement may also lead to the parked car being given some blame also.
Legal help
Unfortunately this operation is only happening for two weeks in one area of the UK. While this could be very useful to roll out to other constabularies, it doesn’t 100% guarantee school children’s safety.
If you or anybody you know has a child who suffers an injury due to negligence (from any form of road user), you do have legal options available to assist. Injuries to children can take far longer to overcome than adults. There is also risk of damage that could affect later life.
If you have encountered this situation and would like to know about legal help including the provision of specialists and the after care available, Scott Rees & Co are here for you. We have a UK wide network of specialists who can help with every asking of dealing with children’s injury claims.
For free, impartial, conscientious advice on making a claim on behalf of a child, you can call us on 01695 722 222. Alternatively you can use our online form to tell us about the incident. From there we can assess your case and give you your best options moving forward.
Images
- Northern Ireland Executive; Flickr; https://www.flickr.com/photos/niexecutive/13692710585
- Wikimedia Commons; Wikipedia; https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ballymoney_Model_School_-_geograph.org.uk_-_830312.jpg