Furious parents fear a “petty” parking ban near a primary school will put their children’s lives at risk.

They are angry that bosses of the nearby village hall in Wingham, near Canterbury, are set to stop mums and dads from using its car park as a drop-off and collection point.

It is the latest move in a long-running parking row which dozens of parents say will leave them no option but to walk children along the busy A257, one side of which has no pavement.

But the hall’s management committee says it has no choice and accuse the school of snubbing its efforts to find a solution.

Parents were told of the new restriction in a newsletter home from Wingham Primary School which has been informed by the village hall committee that the ban will come into force when the new term starts in September.

They have previously been accused of misuse and “abuse” of the rules at the private 28-space car park. This resulted in bollards being installed to try and control the parking activity.

Village hall representatives previously branded the situation “chaos”, blaming irresponsible drivers for blocking its entrance, making it difficult for its own users and potentially obstructing emergency vehicles.

They also said nearby residents are impacted too and have been unable to access their own properties during the school run.

It led to angry exchanges when village hall committee members and residents in yellow tabards tried stopping traffic and took photos of cars.

In September last year, it was claimed that all parties would get together to try and thrash out the best solution but that has now culminated in the outright parking ban with no alternative.

However, mum-of-two Stacie Garside, from Littlebourne, says closing the car park to parents will cause traffic mayhem in the village and put pupil’s lives in peril if they have to make a hazardous walk.

“The greatest issue here is the safety of young children and I’m appealing to the village hall to show some community spirit and human kindness,” she said.

“There are no other safe routes for children and this will put their lives at risk.”

She believes it is a village community issue which needs to involve everyone in finding an amicable solution, including the school and parish council.

Sally Carson from Ash drives her three grandchildren to the school and predicts a “nightmare” with the ban in September.

“My own children went to the school when we lived in Wingham,” she said. “I just ask what is the village hall gaining from it, because the car park is often empty throughout the day and pick-up and drop-off is a very short period?

“It just seems petty and Wingham is supposed to be a community.”

Mum-of-two Theresa Best from Aylesham also fears for her children.

“The road is very busy with heavy lorries and a child could get killed,” she said. “There is simply no safe alternative to the village hall car park.”

But the school newsletter sent to parents says: “We have been informed by the village hall ‘as from September, we will be making changes to the layout of the village hall’s private car park to ease congestion for all hall users’.

“Therefore, from September you will no longer be able to use the car park and will need to park elsewhere.

“While we know the vast majority of families have been considerate to the local community’s requests, the changes that have been made have not been enough for the car park to remain in use by the Wingham school community.

“In the meantime, please do not park in the car park before 2.50pm or smoke within its vicinity. It is private property.”

Residents of School Lane have also complained in the past about parking at the village hall.

But Jackie Kelly says they were not consulted over the parking ban and have not influenced the village hall committee’s decision.

Writing on the village’s Facebook page, she adds: “We have lived in School Lane for 17 years and received verbal abuse, people parking on our drive and our wall has been knocked over twice.

“Residents appreciate that children need to be dropped off safely but this is a matter for the school and the council. The bottom line is the village hall car park is for their users, not the school.”

But mum Shan Cole says it’s “absolutely disgusting.”

“No zebra crossings, no paths to use. So expect late drop-offs and collections then,” she writes.

“Wingham school seriously needs to address this and organise a drop off/collection.

“I don’t want to be putting my children into their car seats on the side of a very busy road.”

Wingham Primary School declined to comment on the parking issues, but previously stopped parents using its own car park as it was deemed unsafe.

But this afternoon, the village hall management committee released a statement that suggests the school has snubbed its efforts to find an amicable solution and ignored its emails.

The committee says: “As of September 2, Wingham village hall car park will be closed to all non-authorised users, including parents of children attending Wingham Primary School.

”Authorised users are those that hire and use the hall for recreational activities, car park space renter’s, local residents with dwellings within the WVH confines and parents with children attending the See Saw Pre School.

“These vehicles will be issued with windscreen stickers which must be clearly visible.

“The WVH Committee regrets having to take this decision and it has only been taken after lengthy consultation and agreement with local residents, pre-school representatives and Wingham Parish Council.

“Furthermore, the committee has gone to great lengths to engage with both the school head, its governors and KCC in an effort to find a solution.

“Earlier in 2023, WVH representatives visited two other schools in the area researching how they with similar parking issues handled their problem.

“In September, the management committee called a meeting at which representatives from the school, its board of governors, Wingham Parish Council were presented with our findings which we believed to be a viable solution.

“This involved the school opening its gates in both the morning and afternoon and use their own staff to manage the flow on their ‘round about’ in and out of the school.

“At that time, there was also an agreement that the chair of governors and members of WPS staff would visit the schools in the following few weeks to see for themselves a working method of traffic management, prior to a follow-up meeting which was to be arranged.

“Our priority is to maintain the safety of all members of the community and subsequently a joint statement was issued and shared with the local community.

On October 31, an email was sent from WVH to the school enquiring on their progress and to arrange a date for a follow-up meeting. No reply was received.

Further emails were sent on November 13 and December 12, again with no response.

“The school is regularly invited to attend the WVH meetings. An email was sent to the chair of governors on February 24 requesting a telephone conversation regarding an update re the parking situation. No response was received.

“The school has since agreed to open its gates at 3:20pm only. Unfortunately, this has had only a minimal effect and only at the end of the day after congestion has already formed and has done nothing for the early morning traffic.”

The management committee adds: “Our objective is to maintain the safety of all villagers in this area but the lack of response from the school has been disappointing and concerning.

“We welcome future constructive dialogue with the school and parents, which has been long awaited, in order to find a workable and safe solution for all concerned.”