SCHOOLchildren in Hartlepool are being given a safer passage to school thanks to a £100,000 boost.

Hartlepool Borough Council is providing the money to create three new Safer Routes to School (SRTS) to encourage more youngsters to travel by foot or bike.

The routes will cover Fens Primary School, St Bega's and St Helen's Primary Schools on the Headland and Jesmond Road and Brougham Primary School.

Work has started to pinpoint the most commonly used routes to each school and to identify any safety concerns along the routes.

Consultation on proposed solutions to these problems will begin in the next academic year. The money to fund any improvements will come from the council's Local Transport Plan, which is concerned with reducing accidents by improving pedestrian safety.

Road safety officer Paul Watson said: "The safety of pupils is of paramount importance and we are delighted to be expanding out SRTS initiative.

"Cars in Hartlepool are used far too often for convenience. We are not anti-car but want to reduce the number of short journeys that are often simply unnecessary".

The SRTS scheme includes an education programme, backed by the Teesside Health Action Zone.

A bid has also been submitted to the national cycling charity Sustrans, to try to secure money to build new cycle stores at schools in the borough.

The aim of the project is to build on the success of the two existing SRTS covering Seaton Lane and King Oswy Drive, in Hartlepool.