Kia ora e te Whānau, tenei te mihi atu ki a koutou

As many of you will be aware, our drop-off and pick up zone can get very crowded, particularly at the end of the school day. The Office regularly fields complaints from members of the public and bus drivers due to the traffic congestion that is created as our parents queue to pick up their children. We were contacted recently by a representative from the Christchurch City Council who had been asked to observe the pick-up area at the end of the school day and returned a number of serious issues.

The behaviour outlined by the Christchurch City Council below is of real concern for us and creates a potentially dangerous situation for our children. Our Board of Trustees has discussed this issue and are considering a range of responses to mitigate this risk, one of which is to close the pick-up area in the afternoons.

The observations were as follows:

• Vehicles waiting to enter the pick-up/drop-off area arrive early and queue over the footpath blocking pedestrians.
• Vehicles from a solid queue back on School Road, around the corner onto Larsens Road, and back to Halswell Rd (SH75).
• As a result of the queue that is formed on School Road, other vehicles wishing to access School Road are choosing to drive along the wrong side of the road to gain access. A concrete mixer was observed doing this on the afternoon he was on site.
• Vehicles accessing the pick-up/drop-off area have to cross the footpath twice- once in and once out, which adds conflict points with pedestrians on the footpath.
• Children and parents are crossing on foot between stationary vehicles waiting in the queue.
• Parents are picking up children while waiting in the queue within the traffic lane.
• Kerbside parking space is left unoccupied whilst vehicles queue in the traffic lane. It appears the first vehicles are choosing to access the off-street pick-up/drop-off area instead of using the available kerbside space. Latter vehicles don’t then have the ability to access the free kerbside space as they are blocked by the vehicles waiting in the queue.
• Additional kerbside parking space is available in surrounding streets, and there is no need to utilise the pick-up/drop-off area.
• This type of off-street facility would operate significantly better in situations where pedestrian numbers and vehicle movements are low.

We believe that the pick-up area can operate safely if the guidelines below are followed.

First and foremost, we would like to encourage parents, caregivers and children to walk or wheel to school if possible. This not only reduces the amount of traffic congestion around the school during peak times but also provides several health benefits and helps create a strong sense of community. However, we understand that this is not always an option for families.

An alternative, especially for older children, is to have a meeting spot slightly away from school. Many children meet their parents on Halswell Road, O'Halloran Drive, Muir Ave etc. it is then a straight run home avoiding the drop off altogether.

The key to the Drop-off & Pick-up Zone working effectively is for all drivers to use it as a taxi rank. We would appreciate all parents following these simple user guidelines:

• Please don't arrive early - we often have drivers turning up from 2.30 pm. If you have extra time up your sleeve, please park on the roadside and walk in to pick up your children.
• If you arrive first, please don't park straight outside of the Office but move as far forward as you can so no spaces are left.
• Drivers should always remain in their vehicles (this is a no-parking area).
• If a car leaves in front of you, please move forward to keep the flow going.
• When exiting the car park, please turn left (we have installed a new sign over the holidays to help remind drivers about this).
• We encourage drivers to use a range of streets for their onward journeys.

We sincerely hope that we can continue operating the pick-up zone in the afternoons as it is a convenient option for many parents, particularly when time is limited in the afternoons. This will be contingent on the above guidelines being consistently adhered to. The Board will also be working in partnership with the CCC travel advisors to provide a range of options for reducing the need to use the pick-up zone.

If the potential risk to our children cannot be mitigated, the Board will be considering closing the pick-up area in their afternoons. Thank you for your support and understanding.

I would like to finish on a more positive note by putting in a plug for the PTA who have their AGM on Tuesday night (7pm via Zoom). Our PTA does an amazing job for our school, not only in terms of fundraising but also in bringing our community together. Getting involved in the PTA is a fantastic way to connect with other parents and gain insights into what's happening around our kura. I would really encourage anyone who might be interested to attend next week's meeting to get a sense of how PTA operates. Please see the PTA article in this newsletter for more details. 

Ngā mihi nui

Stuart Cameron

Principal