Students at Dawlish College have demanded that Devon highways bosses take urgent action over road safety near their school before a tragedy occurs.

Representatives from the Dawlish College Student Leadership Team met with Devon County Council’s cabinet member for highways, councillor Dan Thomas, earlier this week to press for immediate action to avoid any further incidents on the road outside their school.

Students shared powerful testimonies, including the story of a pupil who was airlifted to Bristol Children’s Hospital after being struck by a car outside the school in 2024.

Headteacher Sam Banks told councillor Thomas that the incident had changed his understanding of safeguarding: ‘I realised the responsibility doesn’t end when students step off site. The danger on the road outside affects families, staff, and our wider community.’

Student leader, Cohen Bray, pointed out that 780 students travel to and from the college every day.

Councillor Thomas was accompanied by Devon County Council’s chief officer for highways, Nigel Jarvis. When Jarvis noted that a different pedestrian crossing in the area—where a woman in her 80s died following a collision between a car and a mobility scooter - was currently the council’s top priority, students challenged the implication they must wait for another tragedy before action is taken. Jarvis acknowledged their concerns.

By the end of the meeting, Cllr Thomas agreed to:

‘Students emerged from the meeting feeling heard, empowered, and optimistic about securing change,’ commented Sandra Lawson from Citizens UK, which is working with the students to develop their campaign.

The students stressed that getting to and from school safely is their right and that they hope the Liberal Democrat Council will deliver measures that the previous Conservative administration ignored for six years, despite repeated appeals from the school and Dawlish Town Council.

Students at Dawlish College launched their ’20 is Plenty’ road safety campaign at the start of the year. The campaign drew strong support from local residents and parents who share their concerns about speeding and dangerous driving on Elm Grove Road.

At the launch, the student leadership team revealed that in a road safety survey they had carried out, nine of the 330 respondents reported that they have been hit by a vehicle outside the school. A further 173 students said they had experienced a close call while crossing the road on their way to or from school.

Road safety is a hot topic throughout Dawlish, particularly along the A379 which runs near Dawlish College. Among the numerous areas of concern are: the existing zebra crossings with many anecdotal reports of drivers ignoring pedestrians; the need for additional pedestrian crossings near Secmaton Lane and the Dawlish Gardens Trust; and the junction with Warren Road.