Making your Road Race into a marathon effort

SCHOOL pupils in Hyndburn are being urged to ditch the car and find “greener” ways to travel, as a new touring theatre production visits schools.

The Lancashire-wide tour will take in St John with St Augustine Primary School, Accrington and Knuzden St Oswald’s Primary School, Knuzden on Wednesday 8 March

They are two of 18 schools in the county chosen to host a performance of The Road Race - a theatre in education production, which brings sustainable travel messages dramatically to life.

Magically transported 50 years into the future, the audience will find a world where school journeys take almost as long as the school day itself.

The audience sees a congested, polluted, stressed and unfit future world. When the benefits of walking, cycling and public transport are discovered, the participants travel back to the present.

Rob Hancock from Lancashire's School Travel Plan team said: “This fast moving play gets children thinking about the way they get to school, and the effect their travel choices can have on themselves and others.

“The youngsters get a valuable insight into the future and the chance to consider the benefits of sustainable alternatives to the car, such as walking, cycling or using the bus, in a fun and interactive way.”

The lively drama, performed by Southampton based theatre group StopWatch, is aimed at junior school children and involves plenty of audience participation.

Pupils are encouraged to develop personal action plans to swap short car journeys for safe, alternative options. A final thought encourages the audience to spread the message to family and friends.

The performance is designed to support school travel plans, which are currently being developed by the participating schools. By developing a travel plan, schools look at the journeys to and from school and ways to make the journey safer and more sustainable, as well as fun for the children.

The tour has been organised by Lancashire County Council’s School Travel Plan Group.