Slow down! That was the message schoolchildren delivered to drivers on a busy Harold Hill road renowned for accidents yesterday.
Pupils from St Ursula’s Junior School spent the morning walking up and down Straight Road with banners and leaflets encouraging people to stick to 20mph.
The aim was to warn drivers of the potential accidents they can cause if they fail to control their speed.
Four sets of children lined the streets encouraging people to see their message while chanting “slow down” in unison.
Headteacher Claire D’Netto believes the campaign is crucial to warn drivers about the potential tragic consequences of speeding.
She said: “We are not only here to educate our children in maths, english and science but also to be great members of society.
“But there is always an accident waiting to happen along the road and we cannot educate injured or dead children.
While speed cameras do operate further down Straight Road, Mrs D’Netto believes more can be done.
She said: “Every morning and evening is a worry for me with more and more cars on the road.
“It’s a rat race out down the hill and we have had people crash into our fence recently but luckily out of school time.
“As a school we are extremely passionate about keeping our community safe so campaigns like this to raise awareness are invaluable.”
Four pupils have taken it upon themselves to be at the heart of the school’s campaign for safer roads.
Harry Lee, Annabelle Poulter, Favour Ajunwa and Tiffany Mangodie have all taken on the extra responsibility to become junior travel ambassadors (JTAs).
The JTAs role is to promote active travel and road safety.
The four 10-year-olds are keen to spread their message and have spoken to pupils from nearby Hildene Primary School about coming up with an action plan for the busy area.
Tiffany said: “A lot of accidents have been happening outside our school because people are driving too fast and we want to tell them why they should slow down.
Favour said: “If someone is hit by a car at 20mph, there is a great chance of survival but at 40mph, there is only a 20 per cent chance of survival.”
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