A HEAD teacher is fighting to reduce the speed limit outside her school amidst fears that a serious accident could occur.

Wendy Nicholas, whose school Beetham C of E Primary has launched a petition to lower the speed limit from 50 to 30 miles per hour, said traffic near the school is 'a constant worry'.

The speed limit has temporarily been lowered to 30 on the A6 between the junctions with Stanley Street and Pool Darkin Lane due to current works taking place.

But the school wants it reduced permanently.

“Our playground is adjacent to the A6 and large vehicles travelling at that speed and only being separated by grass verges you’re always going to have potential danger,” said Ms Nicholas.

“It’s something we’ve spoken about in the past and something our children were working on before lockdown.

“Because it’s been reduced temporarily it just seemed like the perfect time to see if the school could get it reduced permanently.”

Ms Nicholas spoke of the huge disturbance speeding traffic has on the children, and that despite soundproofing classrooms, it is still not enough.

“We have a lot of very heavy traffic that goes past the school and very often it’s going over 60 miles per hour,” she said.

“That has a very big effect on noise, but also it’s a very difficult turning on Stanley Street and we have had parents and staff having accidents when people have been driving too fast, gone into the back of them when they’re going to school.

“It’s been a constant worry.

"One parent was a child herself at the school. She put on the petition that she remembers an accident happening on the A6 outside and how upset she was at the time and she didn’t want that for her children.”

Hundreds of people have signed the petition which was launched last week.

“I’m hoping it is something a lot of people will feel strongly about, it will benefit the whole village,” said Ms Nicholas.

“We’d like as many people as possible to sign as possible because it would make a real difference to the school.”

You can sign the petition here .