Headteacher on lollipop patrolafter school hit by cutbacks

Tania Johnson, head of Horringer Court Middle School, in Horringer, Suffolk, has split the duties with three members of her senior staff.

Between them, they work on the crossing between 8.15am and 8.35am each school day.

They also man the patrol after school, between 3.15pm and 3.30pm.

Parents have been sent a letter from the school explaining that funding for the patrol, on a busy road, has been cut by Suffolk County Council due to “financial restraints”.

The previous lollipop man retired last week.

The letter said: “Members of school staff have volunteered to man the crossing until March, when the county (council) will review the situation.”

Mrs Johnson said: “We got together and decided it was a crossing that needed to be manned.

“We are a middle school but our youngest children are only nine and they do need to be seen across and, at the end of the day, children do like to run out of school.”

A council spokesman said: “Suffolk County Council appreciates the dedication and commitment of all school crossing patrol staff.

“The service is currently under review as part of the council’s New Strategic Direction and, like all other services, it is subject to recruitment restrictions.”

County councillor Craig Dearden-Phillips, who is also chairman of governors at the school, said: “I think it’s an indictment of the depth of problems we face as a country. We had a retirement and had to act to quickly and Tania, typically, led from the front.”