Protest held on £395,000 cuts to lollipop patrols across Dudley earning '£10-a-day'

Placard-wielding lollipop wardens demonstrated their anger outside Dudley Council House ahead of a scrutiny committee meeting looking into the proposals to withdraw funding for the service.

But during a heated debate it emerged that officers could not agree on the number of jobs and crossings affected. After a warden told the meeting he earned just £10 a day, councillors complained that the sums did not add up.

Scrutiny chairman Councillor Alan Finch described officers' response to questions as 'poor' and requested a breakdown of the figures.

A consultation into the axing of the service was launched last month and an extension granted when opponents argued they had not been given long enough to put their case. A petition containing almost 9,000 signatures to save the wardens was handed to the council last week.

Tuesday's meeting heard there were 81 school sites, 63 wardens and a further 14 standby wardens involved in the service but it was pointed out the figures differed to those given to the last meeting.

Councillor Karen Shakespeare claimed the risks to children's safety would not be so great if the 20mph speed limit around schools was implemented during arrival and home times only, instead of a blanket restriction which drivers ignored.

Strategic director Alan Lunt said that with equipment and training factored in, the £395,000 costs could be accounted for. He agreed to bring a breakdown of the figures to the next meeting in January.

But Councillor Matt Rogers said afterwards: "We are not dealing with numbers here but people who give their lives in all weathers to make sure children get to school safely and they are at risk of losing their jobs. The officers should have been better prepared."

The council is not obliged to pay for school wardens but mother-of-two Emma Swan, whose children attend Thorns Primary School, Quarry Bank, said it had a moral duty to do so.

"A child will be killed it this goes ahead and the council must take the responsibility for that," she added.

Also among the demonstrators were Kevin Maiden, 54, of White City Road, Quarry Bank, whose wife Gail is a lollipop lady. He said: "The council wastes so much more money than it is trying to save with this move, and that's what hurts."

As part of the consultation, schools were asked to rate options including ending the school crossing patrol completely, retaining a crossing patrol operated and managed by the council at an estimated rechargeable cost of £6,500, and retaining a crossing patrol site with staff who are directly employed and funded by schools, with estimated fee of £1,500 payable to the council.

Only 26 of the 123 schools invited to take part in the consultation responded. Of those that did, 76.9 per cent put ending the provision completely as their last choice, with 53.8 per cent putting retaining it with the charge to the council as their first choice.

The council has blamed the move on budget cuts imposed upon them by a reduction in Government funding.

In a plea to the council at the meeting, resident Geoff Collins said: "It is an indication of the world we live in that we're looking at Dudley Council potentially saving money when they could be saving children."

Gordon Gibbs, Dudley branch secretary of the GMB union, claimed that the borough had been hit harder that neighbouring council areas.

He said: "We accept cuts but obviously there is a concern that children may not be able to cross safely and that has been eloquently raised by this demonstration."

Councillor Finch said the committee and public had been given a 'mishmash' of information.

He added that an education officer would attend the next meeting so the committee could discuss alternative funding streams to help pay for the service.

A final decision will be made by full council on March 6.