Children riding bikes to school told to get number plate

PUPILS will be banned from cycling to school unless they have a number plate, a headteacher has announced.

Kevin Batchelor has told youngsters at Beacon School in Banstead, Surrey, they will have to ask their parents to sign a contract in which they promise to adhere to the Highway Code if they want a “permit in the form of a number plate”.

He said the move aimed to stop them riding irresponsibly as the plates – attached beneath the seat – would help identify who needed training and safety awareness sessions.

Mr Batchelor told The Daily Telegraph it was designed to develop the students’ sense of responsibility on the road, adding: “We will provide extra training to students where it is needed. We have had positive comments from families about this scheme and I have been happy to engage with the cycling community.”

Licence plates on bikes are not new to the area, and other institutions in the GLF Schools academies enforce the same rules, he added.

But campaigners have questioned the decision amid concerns it may put children off cycling to school.

Chris Boardman, the Olympic cycling gold medallist, wrote on Twitter: “Apart from not being legal (to dictate how people travel outside of school, and mandate things that aren’t required by law), I’d be pretty upset if I was a parent. If you really care about the children’s safety, this isn’t it...”

Sam Jones, a campaigner for Cycling UK, added: “I’m pretty dismayed by what is happening here. I’m concerned about confiscation and its legality and that this would be a barrier to more people cycling.”