Last lollipop patrols in Croydon to end this year

A south London council has said safety remains a priority as it plans to remove its remaining lollipop school crossing patrols by the end of the year.

Croydon Council's cut, which affects six school sites across the borough, has been called "penny-pinching" by a councillor.

The decision, revealed through a Freedom of Information request by InsideCroydon, will see the crossing services during school drop-off and pick-up hours stopped at the end of the year.

Road crossing safety is a non-statutory service, meaning the council is under no legal obligation to provide it. A spokesperson for the council said risk assessments had been completed and "road safety remains a priority".

The six schools affected are:

• Cypress Infants and Juniors in South Norwood Hill
• Norbury Manor Primary in Norbury
• Orchard Way Primary in Shirley
• Monks Orchard Infants and Juniors in Shirley
• Oasis Academy Ryelands in Woodside
• Greenvale Primary in Selsdon

Lib Dem councillor Claire Bonham told the Local Democracy Reporting Service she had been contacted by anxious parents in her Crystal Palace and Upper Norwood ward.

She said: "They are rightly concerned that this will have an impact on their children's safety.

"Lollipop men and women are a valued part of the community, keeping children safe and providing a safe, reassuring presence for families on their way to school."

Bonham said it felt "like penny-pinching" and said she had written to the council's Conservative mayor Jason Perry "to set out my opposition to cutting these services".

Labour councillor Rowenna Davis, for Waddon ward, also criticised the budgetary decision.

Croydon's school road safety patrols have been sharply reduced over the last decade. In 2011, there were 22, but a previous Conservative-led council cut that number in half.

The council said the recent decision followed a 2022 service review, which was discussed in committee in December 2022 before being approved in the budget plan in October 2024.

It added that the affected schools were notified in March this year.

A Croydon Council spokesperson said: "Most patrols were phased out many years ago and risk assessments have been completed for the six remaining sites, with one now earmarked for a permanent crossing and three located on Healthy School Streets."

The council said its road safety officer would continue to work with schools on its other programs.

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