Thread by @EmilyKerr36

Private schools: please can you help be part of the solution rather than the problem? I think you are creating up to 70% of Oxford’s school run traffic, and you need to help your parents with alternatives to driving huge cars through our congested streets at peak hours (1/8).

Inside the ring road, there are 7k private school kids and 14k state school kids. State schools have local catchments so most children can walk or cycle to them, but the 12 private schools pull from a huge area. Cherwell has 11% of pupils coming by car, you seem to be 65%+ (2/8)

Some of you are trying, but not enough. Half of you are part of OSBP network, but your private busses are up to £2k per year per pupil. They don’t stop at the P&Rs. Outside your gates is a high volume of dangerous cars. You’re leaving many parents no choice but to drive. (3/8)

The solutions? We need you to run better busses, cross-subsidised from your fees. Run them more often & from the P&Rs. Your children get £20k+ per year (4x state school pupil), there's scope to subsidise if you are serious about reducing your impact on the community. (4/8)

Launch school streets: make the areas outside your gates safe for children who choose to cycle. Stop making driving the easiest option for parents. And provide better alternatives and incentives for your staff to travel – ride-sharing, bicycle parking, ebikes to borrow. (5/8)

Many of you have signed up to zero carbon by 2030, most of your emissions are due to road travel. Moving away from parents cramming your gates would also benefit residents, and be safer for your own pupils. It’s win/ win, but it requires you to show leadership (6/8).

If you have the will and commitment, it’s possible. I’ll even help – for free. @CherwellSchool did it with ¼ of your resources, and I’m sure they’d give advice. You map, set targets, drive culture change. There’s clearly a way, the question is do you have the will? (7/8)

PS. Do correct me on the % of your kids who arrive by car. There was no info on your websites so I did a manual count & extrapolated, but it's easy for you to get the data - just go around classrooms and get pupils to raise hands. I’ll update the Excel if you do, just @ me. (8/8)