New ‘Respect Me’ plea to STOP abuse towards County’s beloved school crossing patrollers

A new campaign is being introduced this week to help protect the small army of lollipop men and women across Buckinghamshire from rising levels of abuse and aggression they receive.

Launching ‘Respect Me’, Buckinghamshire County Council’s School Crossing Patrollers team say it’s time to raise awareness about the issues sometimes faced by lollipop men and women and to highlight the importance of their role in the community.

The ‘Respect Me’ project, which will see patrollers wearing new orange tabards bearing the slogan, focuses on the rise in incidents over the past year as well as urging residents to support their local patroller by reporting anything they witness.

There have been rising concerns as incident reports have increased over 2019, with 12 reports recorded in December alone. Cases have included drivers refusing to stop or experiences of aggression or abuse.

Currently, there are 60 patrollers devoting their time morning and afternoon to helping children safely reach school as well as assisting adults across the road.

Bucks’ school crossing patrollers have become valuable members of their communities, with the longest serving lollipop woman Christine Walker crossing pedestrians for 42 years and 91-year-old lollipop man Gilly Fryer who is well-loved by the pupils he helps.

The team are also on the lookout for more permanent patrollers as well as relief patrollers who can be available at short notice to stand in if someone is unable to work.

Buckinghamshire County Council Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Transportation Mark Shaw said of the campaign, “It’s important to not only raise the awareness about the fantastic work done by our school crossing patrollers, but also talk about the difficulties they face. Any case of abuse or aggression is one too many in my book, so I’m firmly behind the new campaign.”

Mark added, “We hope that communities will continue to support their local patroller and that more people will want to help ensure everyone crosses safely.”

To report any incidents involving School Crossing Patrollers, please contact:

Corinne Randall—Aylesbury Vale and Wycombe (West): 
Tel: 01296 383432 
Georgina Longley—Chiltern & South Bucks and Wycombe (East): 
Tel: 01494 586639 Job share welcome.

For more information on current vacancies, please visit www.buckscc.gov.uk/scp