As you are aware parking outside schools is an emotive subject for residents and realistically a behavioural issue by parents which as the Highway Authority we are limited in what can be achieved.
It is appreciated that yellow line restrictions are still seen as the panacea for tackling this issue, unfortunately they are not as the Traffic Penalty Tribunals have determined that where it is parents from the school dropping off their children this is classed as loading and unloading, a permitted activity on no waiting restrictions. Civil Enforcement Officers cannot issue a ticket in these circumstances.
Also regardless of the restrictions in place motorists will still park on them for short periods of time as it is convenient for them to do so, this is a societal behavioural issue. We will bring the parking to the attention of the enforcement officer to request that they increase their level of enforcement of the existing restrictions but their presence on a regular basis is not something that is maintainable in the long run.
Realistically the only restriction that we can enforce outside a school is the School Keep Clear (SKC) which at this location is enforced by Camera Car. we could consider a SKC opposite the existing restrictions, but this would restrict the residents visitors parking during the operational hours (mon-fri 0800-1600, 52 weeks per year)
Whilst parents insist on driving their children to school and drop them off as near to the school as is possible this issue will continue. With so many parents doing this at the same time this does inevitably lead to congestion.
We understand that parking on verges is one of the issues and that the verges have become very rutted. We have a policy to not protect grass verges and we would not consider no waiting restrictions to stop people parking on them. We also need to be mindful of displacing the parking to other verges further down the road and so on causing a similar issue. Drivers visiting the school are likely to think that parking on the verges does not cause an issue. It is appreciated that parents and their children may try to cross between these vehicles but they should know that it is unsafe to cross between parked cars and that it should be much safer to use the school crossing patrol we have provided in the vicinity of the school. Again, this is a behavioural issue which is very hard to address.
Notwithstanding all of the above if the parking is dangerous or causes an obstruction, in the absence of formal parking controls, it remains an offence under the Road Traffic Act 1988 for any person in charge of a vehicle to cause or permit that vehicle to stand on a road in such a manner that is considered to be dangerous, or that which causes an obstruction to the safe and effective use of the highway. Any such instances of this should be reported to the Police on their non-emergency number 101 who are the only authority that has the powers to take action in these situations. The measures taken are at the discretion of the Police who need to be able to justify their actions. The same goes for dangerous driving which again the police can enforce.
Colleagues are aware of the difficulties at this school and we will contact them again with your concerns. There are many initiatives that we can offer the school but for these to work the school needs to recognise that this is not a highway issue, this is a parental behavioural issue that as the highway authority we cannot address without their support and buy in.
We appreciate your email and a description of the issues that are of concern. However, we do not think that a meeting with an officer on site would be beneficial on this occasion given the limited options that are available.