High school pupils have secured funding to boost cycling, walking and wheeling at their schools after successfully pitching their ideas to active travel experts.
Youngsters from across Greater Manchester were invited to present their ideas to boost active travel in their communities as part of this year’s Youth Travel Ambassador (YTA) programme.
Delivered by Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) and funded by the Department for Transport (DfT) Capability Fund, the YTA programme aims to give high school students the skills and confidence to address transport issues affecting their school community.
Teams from 10 secondary schools took part in the latest round of YTA scheme, with each team attending a series of workshops to learn about the benefits of active travel and to consider some of the barriers people may face in travelling this way.
Pupils also learned about ways to encourage people to change their habits, before devising and creating their own behaviour change campaigns.
They then pitched their campaign ideas to a panel of judges at an interschool “Dragon’s Den” style event, known as a ‘Campaign Junction’ in Manchester.
Some of their exciting ideas included a walking bus scheme to help pupils feel safe on their journey to and from high school, a cycle badge scheme and a walking competition.
The panel of judges included Pete Zanzottera, Technical Specialist Advisor at TfGM, Stephen Whitehouse, Senior Active Travel Officer at TfGM, Keith Woodward and Steph Lake, Active Travel Academy Coordinators at Modes
Pete Zanzottera, Technical Specialist Advisor at TfGM, said: “I was delighted to be a panel member for the programme and listen to all the fantastic pitches.
“The students had excellent ideas on how to make cycling, walking and wheeling more accessible for their school community and this programme will give them the opportunity to put those ideas into action.
“The YTA programme more broadly is great way to empower and enable more young people to travel actively to their place of education and enjoy all the health and wellbeing benefits it can bring to their lives.”
All high schools who took part on the pitching event were successful in their bids for the £500 grants.
Janine McCann, Principal at Stockport Academy, said: “We are always proud of our students’ passion to make the world around them a better place, and this project is a perfect example of this. At Stockport Academy, our ambition is for every student to leave with the tools they need to make a positive contribution to society, and their ‘Walk More – Breathe Better’ scheme will give this group the confidence and experience to achieve great things in their futures.
“We look forward to supporting them in this exciting programme over the coming weeks and months.”
Donna Johnson and Neil Johnson, Co-headteachers at Levenshulme High School, added: “We are incredibly proud of our pupils. Their commitment to making the world a better place is inspiring. We are grateful for our pupils and their teachers, for drawing attention to this important part of social action which seeks to have a positive impact on the environment and physical and emotional health.
“The YTA programme has been an excellent way for our students to put their leadership skills into action. The programme has guided them through identifying and addressing issues particular to our school. The students have enjoyed all the sessions and thrived working on their project. Their enthusiasm and commitment is evident and they were so excited and proud to receive the grant.”
Saddleworth School, Stretford High School, Denton Community College, Altrincham Grammar School for Girls, Didsbury High School and Piper Hill High School also successfully pitched their ideas for the £500 grants.
The next round of the Youth Travel Ambassador programme will start in September and run until Summer 2024. If you are a high school and interested in taking part, or if you would like more information, please contact Active.Travel@tfgm.com
