Back to school

Yes, it’s that time of year again, the summer holidays are nearly over and you’ve got to get your kids ready to head back to school.

What with the need to buy school uniforms, rucksacks and of course a whole range of coloured pens and pencils, how your child will get to school might not at the top of your list.  So we’ve put together a few tips for getting to school sustainably to make the choice easier for you.

Walking

In an ideal world all children would walk to school.  It’s a great way to get fit and it won’t cost you a penny!  There are loads of easy pathways and walking routes across Nottingham and more and more areas are being redesigned for the benefit of pedestrians.  Check out the walking section of our website for more details.

For you busy parents who don’t have time to walk your kids to school in the morning it may be tempting to hop in the car instead.  Before you do why not check out whether your school runs a walking bus scheme?  Volunteers (usually other parents) lead groups of children to school making “stops” to collect children along the way.  It’s a great way to make sure they’re getting the exercise they need, with the reassurance that they’re in a safe pair of hands.

Cycling

Cycling is another fantastic way for your child to get active on the way to school, and councils are making major improvements to cycle routes so there are loads of safe, quick and easy routes to take you from A to B.

Lots of schools now offer cycle training provided by RideWise to students, so you can be sure your kids know the rules of the road.  If they don’t have a scheme in place you can contact RideWise yourself – you can even get trained up at the same time so you can cycle to school with them!

Buses and Trams

We can’t tell you often enough just how brilliant Greater Nottingham’s transport network is!  There are lots of great ticket options available so getting about is as cheap as chips – NCT does a Young Person’s Travel Card that can cost as little as 70p a day for unlimited travel.  It’s even easy to work out which bus or tram to catch using triptimes – the online journey planner.

Car Sharing

Despite our best efforts it isn’t always possible to get around using sustainable transport so why car share with some other parents?  One day you could take their kids to school, and the next day you take theirs.  That way you’ll be helping to reduce the number of cars on the road while still making sure your little angels get to school on time.  You could try asking the parents of your kids’ friends, or why not check out Nottinghamshare – an online service that can help you to find someone to share lifts with.

These are just a few examples of using sustainable transport to get about, your school may run it’s own schemes or you may be entitled to free transport.  For more details either speak to your school directly or contact your council.

For schools in the City Council boundaries click here phone 0115 9150692 or email .  For schools in the County Council click here or phone 08449 808080 and ask to speak to the school transport team.