Pink Pages     MyLocalHero 2022     Advertise with us     

BreakingYourLocalNews

PARKING ROW: Neighbours of Northwood school hit out at parking problems with parents

 Published on: 14th April 2022   |   By: Bryn Holmes   |   Category: Uncategorized

Residents of a private road neighbouring Northwood College have spoken to NORTHWOOD&RUISLIPnews about the issues they’ve had with parents waiting to pick up their children from a neighbouring private school.

People living on Leaf Close, near the Northwood College for Girls, have described difficulties parking, arguments and even situations where the police have been called, saying the situation has become a “nightmare”.

One anonymous resident said “We have been suffering the abuse and threats of the parents of Northwood College’ for years now. I come home from picking up my kids from school and cannot go inside my own home and my job has suffered too by missed meetings. The stress and upset this adds to our day is beyond describable.”

Fellow Leaf Close homeowner Sunil Kapadia described one situation: “There was one instance where my wife asked one of the parents to move and the lady gave abuse in front of our son and told her to go away.

“My wife said she would block her car due to her behaviour to which the parent became more abusive. My wife eventually moved and later to our surprise police came knocking asking questions.”

Ellie Barham, a carer who looks after a resident on Leaf Close, said: “It is normally packed with Northwood College parents picking up their children sitting in their cars for many hours.”

“People find it hard to find a parking space and they live here, which is totally unfair. I have had to park down two roads away from Leaf Close and walk, which is not right.”

Headteacher of Northwood College for Girls, Rebecca Brown, said in a statement to NORTHWOOD&RUISLIPnews: “I was disappointed and saddened to read the statements that our neighbours on Leaf Close have made. This year marks our 130th year of teaching on Maxwell Road and we pride ourselves in being valued members of the Northwood community.

“I am disappointed to read the comment that we have done nothing to alleviate the situation when we have done so much. Over the past few years, we have invested in additional coach routes. We offer and heavily promote a ‘Walking Bus’ option for the girls in order to avoid parents having to park in our close vicinity.
“Members of my leadership team patrol outside school in high visibility jackets every day to help our parents negotiate the traffic during the busiest times.

“We recently opened two additional entrances to our Junior School with the aim to help spread the distribution of parking cars along the Maxwell Road and we now ensure that our school coaches park on the school site to avoid extra congestion.

“I am concerned to hear of altercations between Northwood College parents and our neighbours, as we work hard to cultivate a friendly, inclusive and warm community spirit at Northwood College and are praised for these qualities. I can assure our neighbours that I will send a letter to all parents at the start of each new term going forward.

“The comment referring to our parents ‘sitting in their cars for many hours’ surprised me as the majority of our parents have full-time jobs and are time-pressured; we know this as we always consider their busy schedules when planning events in school.

“Finally, we were concerned to read the comment regarding a police enquiry; we have an excellent relationship with our police Safer Neighbourhood Team who immediately advise us of any instances that occur in the community that could potentially involve or affect our school or our pupils.

“Going forward, we will produce a ‘Traffic Code of Conduct’ that we will distribute to our parents and remind them of regularly.”

Hillingdon Borough Council has also been contacted for comment.

Photo Credit: Google Maps

Sign up to get weekly local news updates & offers:

[gravityform id="3" title="false" description="false" ajax="true"]

0 Comments

Leave a comment

*

*

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Top