CHAOTIC parking outside a special school is an "accident waiting to happen," councillors have been told.

Plans to add three extra classrooms at Mowbray School in Bedale, one of the region’s leading co-educational special schools catering for children across a large area stretching from Stockton to Harrogate, will make the situation worse, town councillors fear.

They applauded the school but decided they had to object on highway and parking issues to plans to build the new classrooms on the site. There are more than 200 children at the school, aged from three to 16, many brought in and picked up by buses and taxis.

Local resident Jackie Nettleton told councillors Mowbray was a great school but there were major parking problems and not enough space on site. She added: “I have no objections at all to the school and the extra classrooms it is good news for the school. I have objections about the parking, to me it is chaotic.

"Cars are parking on Masham Road, on Burrell Road estate and on grass verges. I have had to ask staff to move because they are parking in front of gates. In the winter with cars parking on the grass it looks a complete mess. It is haphazard.

“The children are going along that road to the nature reserve. It is an accident waiting to happen, you can’t see because there are so many cars.”

Mayor councillor Amanda Coates said there was a large waiting list for special schools and places at Mowbray were snapped up.

Darlington and Stockton Times:

Councillor John Noone said: “It gets really, really difficult around that area on the drop off and pick up times. It’s not just the staff parking, it gets worse twice a day. There is a major problem with parking that really needs looking at. We haven’t had a lot of accidents there, there is a chicane that was put in.”

Councillor David Ingram said: “There is a safety issue as well with that layby, and the nature of the school, we have to be very careful with that.”

Councillor John Hayes added: “There are obviously concerns over periods of activity when children are being dropped off. It really needs a resolution.”

Town clerk Nick Reed said the school had said although there were three new classrooms, some would be used to free up science rooms. The school had also said they are working with a local business to try and accommodate overflow parking.

Cllr Noone added: “It is not an objection to the school, it is a very successful school, but we are not supportive of the traffic, we need to object to the current application on the highway issues and parking, but support the school, this needs to be sorted out properly.”