A primary school received an award after getting pupils to start using greener transport.

Brookfield Primary School, in Sutton, was rated ‘outstanding’ for their School Travel Plan by Transport for London (TfL) for encouraging pupils, parents and staff to walk or cycle to school instead of travelling by car.

Samantha Bowry, the school’s deputy headteacher, said: “We always participate in Walk to School Weeks and we promote walking and cycling by holding annual Big Breakfasts for pupils.

“But our greatest success has been the development of cycling at Brookfield. Year 5 and 6 have the opportunity to participate in road cycle training and Year 6 are allowed to cycle to school and have use of our cycle shed.

“This year we also won the Sutton Cycling Championships - it was the first time we entered a team and we came first, winning a trip to Herne Hill Velodrome for the entire Year 6.”

Councillor Colin Hall, executive member for environment on Sutton Council, said: “Congratulations to all at Brookfield Primary for their ‘Outstanding’ rating.

“Children and parents at our schools have been among the most enthusiastic supporters of Smarter Travel Sutton and we have seen huge changes in the way they are travelling to and from school.

“Walking and cycling are great for children’s health and the exercise means they are more alert in the classroom too. It’s also much kinder to the environment than travelling by car and cuts congestion on our roads.

“I hope Brookfield and all of our schools keep up the good work.”

School travel plans are accredited by Transport for London and rated either ‘Outstanding’, ‘Higher Standards’ or ‘Sustainable’.

Sutton was the first borough in London to have an approved travel plan for each of its schools, under the Smarter Travel Sutton project, a three-year partnership between Sutton Council and TfL.

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