We’ve had to take drastic measures to discourage “ignorant” drivers from parking in front of our homes during the school run – it’s hell

LOCALS have been forced to take drastic measures to prevent ‘ignorant’ parents run by the school from parking in front of their homes.

St Joseph’s Catholic Academy in Goldenhill, Stoke-on-Trent has been forced to put up huge signs warning of dangerous parking.

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They acted after a series of near misses at the elementary school caused by parents ignoring yellow markers, making inappropriate three-point turns and parking at intersections.

The school even sends a janitor twice a day to set up bollards to emphasize that the yellow area in front of the school gate is not for stopping, but a minority continue anyway.

Their selfish antics enrage fellow parents and local residents, who say they witness “chaos” twice a day.

A 41-year-old mother of four said: “I saw a sixth grader almost get run over as a car pulled onto the curb between the bollards to get closer to the school gate.

“There’s just no respect. They get as close to the gate as they can, push their kids out, and off they go. Or they stay and talk.

“The school cannot do more. It’s the parents who have to make the change, but it’s always been that way.”

The school, St Joseph’s Catholic Academy, is on the outskirts of Stoke, bordered on one side by countryside and on the other by residential buildings.

It has only 237 students and is on a straight road wide enough for three cars with no parking restrictions on one side.

Papa Dave Hellawell, 48, fumed: “Some parents are just ignorant. They don’t care where they park because for them it’s only a few minutes without consequences, but it only takes a second for an accident to happen.

“The school texts us when there are near misses and reminds parents to park properly. We’ve had PCSOs down here watching and doing nothing, but it’s not often enough.

“We need a camera and some red lines so that when a vehicle stops, they can get a ticket. I think that would stop it.’

Some parents are so angry they can’t help but see others park badly.

Teaching assistant Chloe Moran, 31, says there shouldn’t be a problem because the school has plenty of space.

But she says lazy parents cause traffic by refusing to take their kids to school.

She said: “I know parents who live down the street who will be driving around.

“I think some people were fined when the traffic cops came down but nothing has changed. The school or the community should buy up a piece of the former golf course and build a parking lot there.”

A 36-year-old teacher and mother said: “Some parents just completely block the road. They sit in their cars and talk to someone in another car while cars line up behind them.

“The school is groaning, but they are doing nothing. They could be out here asking people to keep going and not stop at the yellow markers.

“Others are so desperate to get onto the road that they park at the bottom of the intersection, creating blind spots. Children almost got run over.’

The chaos is also hell for local residents, who struggle with it twice a day, five days a week.

Derek Scragg, 77, watched the scene from his home on adjacent Colclough Lane and said: “It’s always been bad but now it’s a mess.

“Occasionally they park across my driveway, but more often you’ll see them parked on the corner of the two streets. I saw a big car doing it.”

A spokesman for the school told The Sun: “St Joseph’s Catholic Academy is committed to the safety of our students and regularly reminds parents to park safely and responsibly.”

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