Schools across Wales urged to create active travel plans

The Welsh Government is urging schools across Wales to produce travel plans to help promote active travel.

The Government has partnered with Sustrans Cymru, which promotes the benefits of active travel, and is providing a comprehensive toolkit to support schools in creating their plans.

The active travel school plan will be a brief document outlining how the school will promote walking, wheeling, cycling or scooting as the means of getting to school, in addition to encouraging active travel by students, parents and school staff.

Schools will also receive specialist guidance from Active Travel School Planning Officers to create their plans and in linking up with their local authority to improve safety on nearby streets.

Lee Waters, Deputy Minister for Climate Change, said: “This is a great opportunity for schools who want to create happier, healthier places for their school community.

“Any school that gets involved will gain access to a wide range of resources, from workshops and activities to surveys and much more, helping them build a positive case for change in their school community.”

This initiative is described as a significant step by the Welsh Government towards achieving the Welsh Sustainable Agenda (Wellbeing of Future Generations Act 2015, Planning Policy Wales) and UN Agenda 2030 (SDGs)by bringing together Education, Transport and Planning.

More information is available from the Active Travel School Planning website.