Minchinhampton pupils design colourful road safety signs for the commons

Pupils at Minchinhampton Church of England Primary Academy have created the warning signs to try and urge drivers to check their speeds.

Their efforts come after a call for greater measures to tackle the amount of free-roaming cattle killed on the commons in Stroud each year.

Around 500 cattle roam the land at Minchinhampton, Rodborough and Selsley between May and October.

Recent speeding figures have found two thirds of motorists are exceeding the 40mph limit on the commons.

The artistic initiative came in partnership with Minchinhampton Parish Council and local property developer Lovell Homes.

Pupils of all ages at the school took part in a competition organised by Lovell to design the best signs asking drivers to think about their speed along the 40mph stretches.

The winners were designed by Isabelle Carmichael, six, Lola Burford, eight, Emily Hampton, 11, Emily Hemlock, 11, Tanwen Bird, 11, Alice Williams, 11 and Aimee Rob, 11.

Sophie Muir, chair of the Academy’s Parent Teacher Association, says: “It’s been lovely for children and the school to work with Lovell and the parish council on this important community project. “There was a fantastic response to the competition with some highly imaginative designs.

“The finished signs have been made so that they can be moved into different locations in the parish where they are needed.”

Michelle Barnsley from Lovell said: “The children really rose to the challenge of designing the new signs and have put a huge amount of thought into their entries.

“The finished signs are very striking and the fact that they’ve been designed by local children makes them even more powerful.”

Lovell has also presented the school with a £500 donation towards classroom equipment.

Last year eight cows were killed on Minchinhampton and Rodborough Commons, rising by two on the previous year.

This year a number of measures have already been introduced in an attempt to lower the number of deaths.

Large signs have been put in place to remind car users to be alert when driving – and several of them will be reflective to make sure they can be seen at night.

Fencing has also been built in an attempt to stop cows walking onto the road by the quarry next to the Amberley turn, where the majority of collisions occur.

A Variable Message Sign trailer is also being used to highlight the release of cattle and incidents as they occur.

So far two cows – a mother and her calf – have been hit by cars.

The commons cattle are cared for by the hayward Mark Dawkins.