Muddy footpaths around 4 Newport schools could be improved if a campaign by 2 Isle of Wight councillors is successful.
Councillor John Hobart (Carisbrooke Ward) and Councillor Chris Whitehouse (Newport West Ward) say local parents are ‘fed up’ with pupils of St Thomas of Canterbury Primary School, Carisbrooke Primary School, Carisbrooke College and Christ the King College coming home with their shoes soaked and caked in mud due to the ‘deplorable state’ of local footpaths.
Cllr Whitehouse says:
“The mud is so deep and puddles so large that the paths are like swamps in some areas after heavy rain. This is no longer acceptable to parents and school students. They are simply fed up. Something must be done.
“Councillor Hobart and I are working with council officers to secure improvements of one section of path that runs from Purdy Road, Newport, behind Christ the King College. We’re also liaising with Island Roads, who are responsible for maintenance and improvement of other local footpaths, to bring forward an upgrade in those paths and to seek a hard tarmac or concrete surface where possible.”
The number of schools in and around Wellington Road, Newport, mean that the paths are used by many hundreds of children every day, as well as local residents and dog-walkers.
