Equality Considerations

Title	School Streets Scheme Delivery
Team/Department	Infrastructure Planning & Place Team
Directorate	Communities, Economy & Transport
Provide a comprehensive description of your proposal	What is a School Street Scheme? The aim of the School Street scheme is to support a healthier local environment near to schools, by making it safer and more enjoyable for everyone to walk, wheel or cycle to and from the school. This is achieved by restricting access to motor vehicles to the streets around the school during the peak school run times. Residents, and Emergency services are exempt from these restrictions. The reason for a School Streets proposal is to support the delivery of a range of benefits at the individual, school, neighbourhood and broader local authority level including: · Removal of congestion and reduction in emissions outside schools · Reduced instances of dangerous driving, parking and turning outside schools at times of day when families are present · Fewer road safety issues · Improving physical activity among families · Improving mental health and social interaction Help local authorities to fulfil their statutory duty to promote the use of sustainable modes of travel to school as set out in the Education Act 1996 and associated statutory guidance. Meets with government policy focussed on supporting active and integrated travel. Active Travel England (ATE) are supportive of these schemes and have recently published  School Streets scheme guidance The publication includes guidance on how Local Authorities must comply with the Public Sector Equality Duty Open the school streets guidance (page 12) Who implements, carries out or delivers it? The Infrastructure, Planning and Place (IPP) team at East Sussex County Council (ESCC) delivers the schemes with support from the following teams: Scheme Delivery, Parking, Road Safety, Public Health, Highways and Asset Management and in consultation with local ward councillors and colleagues from the district and borough councils where relevant (for e.g. waste management, conservation officer) Schools Streets development and delivery approach This includes the following stages: · Consultation, using a co-design approach, with local stakeholders including the school community, residents, local businesses and organisations, local ward councillors through workshops and surveys · Restricting access to vehicles outside of the school to motor vehicles during peak school hours by introducing an Experimental Traffic Regulation Order (ETRO) over an eighteen-month period but with an exemption for residents and emergency vehicles. · Changes can be made periodically, over six-month periods, to any restrictions therefore a consultation during this period is undertaken to allow for feedback. (This includes any issues regarding access to the area) · If no objections are received within the six-month period, the School Street schemes will be made permanent. (If this is not the case then the trial will continue up to the 18-month period when it can either be made permanent or withdrawn.) For the wider School Streets programme: The implementation of a School Streets scheme is delivered in different stages. · Initial request for a School Street scheme Each school will be assessed on an individual basis through the East Sussex County Councils School Streets assessment framework (being developed in early 2025). · Development of a scheme via an ETRO, will be subject to available funding · Local consultation with members of the community around the school using a co-design approach
Engagement undertaken or planned	Using a co-design approach, the team involve a wide variety of stakeholders at each stage of the process. This may vary depending on the specific project, but usually includes: Workshops with members of the school community, residents who live locally to the school, local businesses and organisations councillors and special interest groups who support walking, wheeling and cycling to seek their ideas on the scheme. Ideas from these workshops are used to feed into potential designs (feasibility design) for the School Street Scheme The feasibility design is presented to the stakeholders and further feedback is gathered to amend the design The detailed design is developed and presented to stakeholders A public consultation is undertaken and the outcome of this is presented to the Lead Member for Transport & Environment. The detailed design is constructed.
Potential issues / barriers / impacts / opportunities		Notes and any mitigating actions
Disability: Potential positive impacts: One of main reasons for the proposed School Street is to provide a safer space to encourage active travel by increasing walking, wheeling and cycling to school. The scheme may see greater benefits to those with restricted mobility and those with visual/hearing impairments. Less busy roads would benefit disabled people whose impairments necessitate extra time to cross the road, or whose mobility aids require travelling along the road. They would allow for use of the carriageway to avoid temporary blockages or hazardous pavements. Potential negative impacts: The need to park further away from the school entrance may lengthen journey times for those with impairments who rely upon private cars or taxis or make it difficult to access the school entrance. Pregnancy and Maternity: Potential positive impacts: One of main reasons for the proposed School Street is to provide a safer space to encourage active travel by increasing walking, wheeling and cycling to school. Reduced traffic volumes are generally likely to reduce conflicts between road users. This will create a safer environment for pregnant people and parents and carers with infants/young children. It should also benefit pedestrians with prams who require additional time to navigate kerbs and other obstacles when crossing the road. Less busy roads also mean that those travelling with prams can use the carriageway to circumvent the narrow footways and temporary blockages on the pavement (e.g., if a bin has been inappropriately left on the pavement or a car has been parked illegally). Improvements in air quality are likely to disproportionately benefit pregnant people. New-born babies and infants, who are more vulnerable to pollution due to their developing airways and rapid breathing, are also likely to disproportionately benefit.  Expectant and recent mothers may be more likely to make frequent visits to medical facilities. Where these journeys are walked, wheeled or cycled, they are likely to be subject to less pollution with reduced traffic volumes. Exposure to poor air quality while at home should reduce immediately for those within the area covered by the Traffic Filters. For those on boundary roads, assuming mode shift away from private car trips is achieved, air quality will improve over time. Potential negative impacts: The need to park further away from the school entrance may lengthen journey times for those with impairments who rely upon private cars or taxis or make it difficult to access the school entrance. No other disproportionate impacts on other protected characteristics are identified.		Through the co-design process access to the school, families with a disabled family member will be given due regard and options considered on a case-by-case basis. Learning from the pilots will be used to identify whether barriers are created for disabled people and, if so, what actions can be taken to remove or reduce these.
Summary of impacts and actions planned, with timeframe

Impact	Action	Timeframe
The need to park further away from the school entrance may lengthen journey times for those with impairments who rely upon private cars or taxis or make it difficult to access the school entrance.	Through the co-design process access to the school, families with a disabled family member will be given due regard and options considered on a case-by-case basis. Learning from the pilots will be used to identify whether barriers are created for disabled people and, if so, what actions can be taken to remove or reduce these.