ANGRY parents claims new parking restrictions outside a York primary school are putting their children's lives at risk.

A single yellow line has been painted along a stretch of Heslington Road alongside St Lawrence's Primary School, prohibiting parking between 8am and 5pm.

Parents claim that, while previously they could park directly outside the school to safely drop their children off, the "ridiculous restrictions" mean they must now park across the road - so their children have to cross the road to get to school.

But City of York Council defended the measures, saying they were part of an overall scheme, supported by the head teacher and governors, to increase safety and also encourage healthier ways of travelling to school.

Head teacher David Thewlis urged parents to walk their children to school if possible. Otherwise he would encourage them to park a little distance away on the same side of the road rather than across the road, which he accepted was dangerous.

The Evening Press received a stream of complaints from parents after a parking attendant arrived at the school earlier this week to enforce the regulations.

Childminder Carol Wharton, who has a child at the school, claimed the new rules were "ridiculous" and, if they remained in place, a child would be hurt.

"Everybody has had to park at the other side and then cross their children over the road," she said. "There is traffic coming from all directions - it is ridiculous.

"The footpath on that side of the road is so high that we have to get the children out on the road side. If this carries on there is definitely going to be a child run over."

Another mother, who did not want to be identified, said: "It's just absolutely ridiculous.

"It's a busy road at that time of day. It's an accident waiting to happen."

Sarah Smith said she had had to get her four children, Natalie, Natasha, Alfie and Dinah, across the road when a parking attendant arrived to enforce the rules earlier this week.

"It was hectic and very dangerous. It's stupid," she said.

Mr Thewlis said: "The school's top priority is the safety of pupils."

Traffic calming had been introduced outside the school earlier this year to slow traffic down, but representations had been made by other road users about congestion in the area particularly at the beginning and end of the school day and the yellow lines had been painted.

He accepted parents' claims that it was dangerous to drop children on the other side of the road, but said he would encourage parents to take their children to school on foot, because it was the healthy option as well as reducing congestion, or park further away along the road.

A City of York Council spokeswoman said the school safety zone's aim was to encourage more sustainable and healthy ways of travelling to school, while encouraging parents to park more considerately, and safely, for other road users.

"Following the introduction of the scheme, the feedback from a variety of road users, (including the bus company), was that parents were ignoring the parking restrictions, parking illegally and causing problems for

other road users, and were also a danger to children.

"The council was therefore asked to enforce these restrictions which we are now doing."

Updated: 12:02 Wednesday, September 18, 2002