A Confusing Mistake on Greendock Street
Residents of Longton, Staffordshire, have been left perplexed after a council painted a ‘School Keep Clear’ sign on a residential street that has not had a school for over 15 years. The bright yellow markings appeared on Greendock Street last week, causing confusion among locals who are now questioning the decision and its implications.
The area was once home to Edensor Technology College, which merged with another secondary school located two-and-a-half miles away in 2011. Since then, the building has been demolished and replaced with 193 new homes. Despite this, the council mistakenly painted the sign, leading to widespread criticism from residents.
Residents Express Frustration
Ali Hassan, a 72-year-old former property landlord living near the sign, described the mistake as “unbelievable.” He pointed out that the sign is clearly misleading and raised concerns about potential parking fines for residents.
Hassan said:
“Surely if they would have looked up and seen my house it would be pretty obvious it’s not a school. I now want to know how much it is going to cost to fix and who is going to pay for it? Will it be the taxpayer footing the bill for this?”
He also expressed confusion about why the council resurfaced a road that didn’t need it while neighboring streets with potholes were ignored.
Social Media Reaction
The error has sparked outrage on social media, with many users pointing out the mistake. One person noted that the ‘S’ in ‘School Keep Clear’ was painted upside down. Others questioned how the workers could have missed the obvious.
Comments included:
– “Also I know this sounds crazy but the S is upside down!!!”
– “Didn’t the workers doing it question it when they realised there was no school. You’d expect at least one to notice it.”
– “Simply unbelievable”
– “The stencil painter needs to go back to… School?”
Council Apologises and Reviews the Issue
Jane Ashworth, Labour leader at Stoke-on-Trent City Council, has apologised to residents and confirmed that the authority will review the issue. She told the BBC that the work was “a mess” and admitted that the council made a mistake.
Ashworth added:
“I’m annoyed for the residents that live there that have been messed about but embarrassed that we made such a mistake. What we will be doing is reviewing how it happened, apologising to the residents, and making it absolutely clear that anybody who parks on what appears to be double yellow line there will not be ticketed.”
Calls for Accountability
Benjamin Elks, grassroots development manager at the Taxpayers Alliance, called the incident a “wasteful bureaucratic blunder” that highlights the neglect of real local issues like potholes.
He said:
“Local taxpayers will be wondering how a council managed to paint ‘school keep clear’ markings outside a school that disappeared 15 years ago. This is exactly the kind of wasteful bureaucratic blunder that leaves residents tearing their hair out while genuine local problems like potholes are ignored.”
Elks urged the council to remove the markings immediately and explain how the mistake was approved in the first place.
Ongoing Concerns
Residents remain concerned about the financial implications of the mistake and who will bear the cost of correcting it. With the council yet to provide a detailed response, the situation continues to cause frustration among those living on Greendock Street.
Stoke-on-Trent City Council has been contacted for further comment.
