Travel for Life
Grange Primary Strikes Gold for Active Travel
We are delighted to announce that Grange Primary School has been awarded the prestigious Gold Accreditation for active and sustainable travel as part of Transport for London’s Travel for Life programme.
This award recognises the hard work of our pupils, staff, governors, and families in making safer, healthier, and more sustainable journeys part of everyday life at Grange.
What this means for our school
At the start of the programme, we didn’t realise how much we were already doing to encourage active travel. The award has allowed us to celebrate those efforts and build on them further. Active travel is now part of our daily routines – from litter picking and scooter training to coffee mornings for parents and the popular walking bus.
We have also benefitted from fantastic free support through the borough, including road safety workshops, Bikeability training, scooter training, and funding for scooter pods. These opportunities have made a real difference for our pupils without adding any extra cost.
Pupil voice
Our pupils have been central to the programme, leading initiatives, creating road safety videos, judging poster competitions, and raising awareness through sponsored walks. Here’s what some of them had to say:
Aftaab, Year 5: “Happy and good – because I know I have made a contribution towards it.”
Ashvi, Year 5: “I feel excited and happy about our school’s achievement.”
Adira, Year 5: “I feel wonderful that we achieved this and we want to continue building on this.”
Daisy, Year 6: “I feel proud and excited.”
Sama, Year 6: “It makes me feel safe and proud.”
Caleb, Year 6: “I feel proud about our school being one of the best.”
Bahar, Year 6: “I feel successful because we finally achieved our potential.”
Parent perspective
Parent governor Pratima Srinivasagopalan shared:
“The school’s focus on sustainable travel has significantly changed how families commute. Walking, cycling, car pooling, and restricted car access outside the school gate have reduced congestion and pollution, making the environment safer and healthier. My child has learnt valuable lessons about road safety and protecting our environment, while these strategies have fostered stronger social interactions between children, parents, and staff, helping build a real sense of community.”
Headteacher’s comment
Headteacher Daniel Kerbel said:
“It’s wonderful because we do so much work on character development and putting our energy into making the world a better place through our actions, so it is fantastic to receive this affirmation. It also inspires us to continue to promote public transport, walking and exercise because we live in London which has such a fantastic public transport system and beautiful spaces to walk.”
Looking ahead
Building on this success, we aim to strengthen our links with the wider community. Following a road accident near the school last term, we will be introducing Travel Ambassadors to promote safe parking, encourage Park and Stride, and support the walking bus. We also hope to work with the council on the possibility of a safe crossing on Welbeck Road.
This Gold Accreditation is a proud moment for our whole school community – and together, we will continue to make travel to and from school safer, healthier, and more sustainable for everyone.
Some of the work done in 2024-25 towards our Travel For Life accreditation:
Year 5 Trip planning to the Science Museum
Bring your bike and scooter day