Whole System Approach to School Active Travel
Supporting schools to walk, cycle, and travel
Working with Thurrock Council in 2025, Active Essex supported the development of an exciting pilot programme designed to take a whole-school approach to Active Travel. The programme aims to create a long-term culture change in how children travel to and from school by combining behavioural change (soft measures) with infrastructure (hard measures).
The overarching ambition is to reduce the barriers that prevent children and their families from choosing sustainable travel options such as walking and cycling. By addressing both attitudes and physical environments, the pilot seeks to improve physical activity levels, health outcomes, and perceptions of active travel across communities.
Active Essex played a key enabling role in shaping and strengthening the pilot programme. This included:
- Supporting the successful bid for Sport England’s Place-Based Expansion Partnership (PBE) funding, contributing significantly to the overall funding package
- Introducing place-based and needs-led analysis to ensure interventions were targeted at communities with the greatest need
- Helping to shift the programme from a transport-led initiative to a whole-system approach, integrating health, physical activity, and social outcomes
- Strengthening cross-departmental collaboration within Thurrock Council, particularly within the active travel agenda
Key learnings
It's important to take time to reflect and understand the learnings from work undertaken, to focus on ways to improve in the future
Capacity matters
Dedicated staff are essential to secure school engagement and deliver behaviour change.
Data drives impact
Health, deprivation, and pupil postcode data enabled targeted, evidence‑led planning.
Collaboration works
Cross‑team working supports more effective, joined‑up solutions.
Flexible funding helps
Blended funding streams enabled both infrastructure and engagement delivery.
Elevating active travel across Thurrock
Active Essex’s involvement has helped drive a significant shift in Thurrock Council’s approach to Active Travel. Where there had previously been resistance to reducing car dependency, the programme has generated increased political and organisational support for sustainable travel.
Key ripple effects include:
- Broader health and wellbeing integration
- Active travel is now explicitly linked to childhood obesity, physical activity, and deprivation priorities.
- Strengthened cross-sector collaboration
- Transport, public health, leisure, and voluntary sector partners are working more closely together.
- Place-based targeting
- Use of Sport England’s Place Needs Classification ensures resources are focused where they can have greatest impact.
- Catalyst for cultural change
- Active travel is positioned as part of a lifestyle and behaviour shift, not just a transport intervention.
Delivery Timeline and School Engagement Plans
The programme is now moving into delivery and expansion, with a focus on deepening engagement with schools that have already expressed interest and others identified as suitable, such as Tilbury Pioneer and Chadwell Primary. A dedicated officer will be recruited in early 2026 to lead the delivery of soft measures, while the cross-team working group will continue to meet regularly to prioritise schools and finalise scheme proposals. In line with Department for Transport requirements, all CATF funded schemes will be submitted by March 2026, with delivery completed by March 2028, and initial programme elements including at least one School Street will be implemented by Easter 2026.
