Pupils paddle to school in clean air initiative

Pupils in Leicester paddled down the river to school as part of an initiative to raise awareness of air pollution.

The Castle Mead Academy (CMA) students arrived at school in a bell boat on Thursday after about 15 minutes on the River Soar.

Clean Air Day saw several other schools in the city taking part in a range of outdoor activities.

Juliette Burt, a geography teacher at CMA, said the paddling idea came from seeing busy traffic on the road outside the school and had received "a lot of support from colleagues and families alike".

The pupils were instructed by Leicester Outdoor Pursuit Centre and had "a really good time", according to Ms Burt.

She said: "Days like today are really important to raise awareness of the air pollution which is caused by traffic, especially in busy cities like Leicester.

"We'd love to see some more sustainable infrastructure around our school, such as bollards or pedestrian crossings and things like that."

The events were supported by Leicester City Council, as well as charities Sustrans and Living Streets.

Elsewhere in the city, University of Leicester organised a walk in Victoria Park and the University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust had information stands in hospital restaurants offering advice and information to staff and the public on how they can help reduce air pollution.

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