Parents are calling for a York primary school to keep its traditional links with Fulford School during the shake-up of the secondary admissions system.

Parents of pupils at Fishergate Primary are angry at council plans to link the school instead with Millthorpe in South Bank, which they say is further away and would mean a much more dangerous walk to school for most pupils.

More than 120 parents have signed a petition urging City of York Council to make Fulford the link school, saying the large majority of Fishergate pupils have traditionally gone there each year.

The authority decided last month to press ahead with creating links between groups of primary schools and specific secondary schools.

In cases where secondary schools are over-subscribed, children living within the catchment area of its sister primary schools will be given priority for a place. The change is due to be phased in over the next three years but further details are being ironed out over coming months.

One of the petition organisers, Fishergate parent Jane Hartas, said: "They say they want to link schools that already have links but most of us don't even know where Millthorpe School is.

"Our traditional links are with Fulford. One reason I brought my children to Fishergate in the first place was because I thought they would be virtually guaranteed a place at Fulford."

Another parent, Sarah Ellison, said: "Getting to Fulford School is more straightforward and much, much safer. Most parents agree that we could contemplate our children getting to Fulford on foot or bike, but not Millthorpe. They would have to cross the Fulford one-way system and then get over the bridge, which is not acceptable.

"A sizeable proportion of parents would take their children by car, which is ironic when John Prescott has just said he wants to reduce school run trips.

"It will increase congestion on the bridge apart from anything else."

Philip Wells, assistant director of education, said: "The links are not set in stone. We will consider what parents have to say about them before coming to a final decision."

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