We’re not all in this together

By Dave Prentis, General Secretary, Unison

We are all in this together… We will protect frontline services… The Tory-led coalition’s claims have been proved false time after time, and the cuts to lollipop ladies – and men – taking place across the country, are yet more proof of their lies.

Today, on the first day of child safety week, UNISON is launching a campaign to save school crossing patrols, after reports emerged of local authorities cutting patrols to save money.

The scale of the cuts to this service, which has a hundred year-long history, is deeply distressing for the safety of children on their way to school. In South Tyneside, 67 out of 91 jobs are threatened, in Suffolk, the entire school crossing patrol are facing the axe, and in Stockport 31 out of 103 lollipop people are under threat. Dorset County Council has put forward plans to cut 65 jobs. These examples are just the tip of the iceberg – a recent survey showed more than a quarter of councils are making cuts to this vital service.

Some councils say they will rely on volunteers – the Big Society – to step into the breach. But volunteers will still need to be equipped, trained and supervised and the service will still need to be administrated, with cover provided – so even the small savings councils hope to make will not materialise. Using volunteers as patrollers downgrades the responsibility of this skilled and potentially dangerous role. It is also unclear whether volunteers have the legal right to stop traffic.

There can be no doubt that lollipop ladies and men save lives, so why are councils making these dangerous decisions? Sadly, crossing staff are not required by law, so they are a soft target for councils – hit by some of the biggest budget cuts in living memory – to make savings on. We say this is a false economy – average pay is just £3,000 a year – a drop in the ocean for councils.

So what is the government doing to protect school children? They are grossly underestimating the scale of the problem. During a debate on school crossing patrols in the House of Commons, sparked by the cuts in Dorset, the government suggested that it knew of no other patrols under threat. Clearly this is not the case – it is time the government protected children and got a grip of this growing problem.

UNISON is running a survey on cuts to school crossing patrols – we are urging people to get in touch about any cuts in their area. Parents need to know that they have the right to ask for an assessment against established national guidelines for crossings, and this includes the right to question their removal.

One of the ‘outs’ that councils are using is that getting children to school safely is ultimately a parental responsibility. But parents can’t stop the traffic, and they are entitled to rely on someone who can.

Unison conference is taking place this week – you can find out more here.