St Aloysius Primary School parents fight for a new crossing on busy Lisburn road

Parents at St Aloysius Primary School in Lisburn have launched a campaign calling for a new crossing to be installed on the very busy Ballinderry Road.
Watch more of our videos on Shots! 
and live on Freeview channel 276
Visit Shots! now

In recent years traffic has increased on the road, which also houses two large schools – St Aloysius and St Patrick’s Academy. With new housing developments and retail units springing up the volume of traffic has continued to increase, with parents now fearing for the safety of their children.

The concerned parents formed a group, St. Aloysius Parents Road Safety Group, and launched the campaign earlier this year after the school’s crossing patrol lady left her position.

When one of the children narrowly escaped being struck by a car her mother, Vicki Alexander and other parents decided to take matters into their own hands and began petitioning the Department for Infrastructure, as well as local politicians, to ensure the safety of their children.

The St. Aloysius Parents Road Safety Group have met with a number of politicians to discuss the need for a crossing on the Ballinderry Road, including Sinn Fein's Gary McCleave, who is pictured with members of the group.The St. Aloysius Parents Road Safety Group have met with a number of politicians to discuss the need for a crossing on the Ballinderry Road, including Sinn Fein's Gary McCleave, who is pictured with members of the group.
The St. Aloysius Parents Road Safety Group have met with a number of politicians to discuss the need for a crossing on the Ballinderry Road, including Sinn Fein's Gary McCleave, who is pictured with members of the group.

"My five-year-old daughter nearly got knocked down,” explained Vicki. “I met her at the front gates and she stepped onto the road. Luckily she took two steps back and the car didn’t hit her but if she had been hit she wouldn’t have survived.

"We know it is the parents responsibility but it is a very built up area and it is a very fast road. We need a crossing installed. You can’t put a price on a child’s safety.”

Fiona Donnelly, who launched the online petition for the parents group, said: “We have over 1000 kids that attend these two schools on the Ballinderry Road. There is nothing in place for the children/parents/caregivers to cross in a safe way to get to the school.

"The road is very fast and if we continue the way we are crossing, something catastrophic could happen.

“We need lights/crossing to keep our kids safe.”

The parents have spoken with a number of local politicians, who are supporting the call for a new crossing at the Ballinderry Road,

After meeting with the parents, Lagan Valley MLA Sorcha Eastwood said: “I am working with the school, parents, and the Road Safety Group to try and resolve this issue and have even asked the EA to consider all possible options, including a temporary arrangement that would enable others to take up this role, this is a sub-optimal solution, but my immediate concern was for the safety of the children.

"However, the EA are faced with damaging cuts to their budget and an arbitrary decision was made not to replace any SCP that became vacant before the end of the financial year.

“The reality is that without a functioning government, and a budget that hasn’t been set by and for politicians from Northern Ireland, situations like this will arise.”

Sinn Fein election candidate Gary McCleave also met with the concerned parents. “The decision of the Education Authority not to restore lollipop patrol people when they retire or leave their post due to cuts is unacceptable,” he said.

“Children at St Aloysius School deserve to have a safe crossing.

“I have met with the St Aloysius road safety group, the school principal and liaised with the Department for Infrastructure on a crossing on the Ballinderry Road.

"The design for the crossing is ready to go to consultation.

“It is absolutely vital that vulnerable children and families are protected and are given the essential education services they need.

“The Executive must be restored now to support children and young people.”

DUP Council election candidate Andrew Ewing also voiced his support for the campaign, saying: “I strongly support the campaign for safety measures to be introduced to help keep our school children and pedestrians safe on such a busy road and I wish to commend the Schools, parents and the local residents on their pro active campaign to raise awareness of this dangerous situation.

"I welcome the fact that a pedestrian crossing is at design stage but I would urge that this is pushed through as a matter of urgency and in the meantime i would like to see a lollipop person reinstated in the interim to ensure the safety of the school children and other pedestrian and road users in the vicinity.”

The Department for Infrastructure confirmed that the crossing for the Ballinderry Road is now at design stage but stressed that the go-ahead depended on funding being made available.

A spokesperson for the Department said: “A scheme to provide a pedestrian crossing at St Aloysius Primary School location is currently at design stage and once completed we will carry out an informal consultation on the proposal with the adjacent schools and local residents. There is currently no estimated date for construction.”

Read More
Pupils from Crumlin Integrated Primary School have a blast at special science ev...

A spokesperson for the Education Authority said they would not replace the crossing patrol after the existing lady left her role. “The Education Authority (EA) remains very concerned about the growing, financial pressures facing education and the projected funding gap for the 2023/24 year,” she said.

“Our team of School Crossing Patrols (SCPs) continue to provide support to over 350 schools across Northern Ireland, however in light of the current budgetary pressures, the recruitment of temporary and permanent SCP officers has paused.

“The EA has no statutory obligation to provide SCPs or statutory remit for road safety.”

Find out more about the campaign and sign the petition online at https://shorturl.at/gszTY

You can also follow the progress of the campaign on social media by searching for ‘St. Aloysius Parents Road Safety Group’ on both Facebook and Twitter.

Anyone wishing to become involved or suggest ideas for the campaign can contact the grup directly in person at the school or by sending an email to [email protected].