Lead Member – Councillor Kirstie Hurst-Knight, Portfolio Holder for Children and Education

Lead Officer – Rhiannon Letman-Wade

RESOLVED

To endorse the annual report,and agree to incorporate the KPI’s listed in the report at 3.1 – 3.8 within the Council’s Performance Management Framework for annual reporting to allow baselining activities to understand the current position in Shropshire, and identify targets to work towards in the next academic year (25-26)

The Portfolio Holder for Children and Education presented the report which highlighted the work of the Sustainable Travel Team over the last academic year, and the key ambitions of the department, seeking approval of KPI’s, an annual report of some of the key milestones and council instruction to return annually for progress updates.

The Sustainable Travel Team was established in February 2024 and had made significant progress in promoting sustainable travel options for school children. The team has implemented various initiatives, including school streets, scooting training, and grants for schools to manage travel-related issues. The team’s work had been recognised nationally which was a great achievement.

The team has been actively engaging with local communities and schools to promote sustainable travel. This included site visits and addressing specific issues raised by local members.

Questions were asked about the current status of sustainable travel infrastructure and if there were any plans to improve cycling and walking paths in Shrewsbury. Members were advised that that the Council had been working on a comprehensive plan to enhance sustainable travel infrastructure and this included the development of new cycling and walking paths, as well as the improvement of existing ones.

Members were reassured that the budget for sustainable travel had been carefully planned and would not affect other environmental projects. Promoting sustainable travel was a priority for the Council to ensure a greener and healthier community.

Members welcomed the return of sustainable travel from the WSP contract to in-house management, expecting more efficient delivery and better outcomes. A suggestion was received to set more ambitious targets for the KPIs, particularly for the Our Journey program and the Green Light program.

RESOLVED

To endorse the annual report,and agree to incorporate the KPI’s listed in the report at 3.1 – 3.8 within the Council’s Performance Management Framework for annual reporting to allow baselining activities to understand the current position in Shropshire, and identify targets to work towards in the next academic year (25-26)