What is a School Travel Plan?

A School Travel Plan (STP) is a working document created to address a school's particular travel and transport needs. Primarily, it aims to steer the school community away from private car trips to and from school, and towards alternative forms of travel, such as walking, cycling, use of public transport and car sharing.

By thinking creatively about travel issues, the STP can become an exciting project, with a holistic focus that is integrated into the life and ethos of your school. There are a number of issues arising when developing a STP, including:

• Environmental considerations (improving sustainable transport)
• Health and fitness - encouraging active forms of travel, such as cycling or walking
• Working with the local community/decreasing congestion for residents living near to the school
• Addressing issues of road safety by improving the traffic awareness skills of pupils and reducing the number of cars around the school gates at the beginning and end of the school day
• Working with the Royal Borough to make appropriate and justified changes to the local roads, for example making the yellow zigzags mandatory and enforcing them

Ideally, the Travel Plan will aim to involve whole school communities (pupils, parents, and governors as well as teaching and non-teaching staff) in increased awareness of transport and road safety issues.