A cash-strapped council has been left red-faced after painting zig-zag school zone lines on a residential street where locals pointed out there has been no school for 15 years.
Residents of a quiet residential street were left baffled after the peculiar bright yellow 'School Keep Clear' markings appeared outside their homes in Longton, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, last week.
Edensor Technology College had once occupied the nearby area, but has been closed since 2011 after merging with another secondary school two-and-a-half miles away. Homeowners have since spoken out over the "unbelievable error", questioning who will be footing the bill to put things right.
Residents React to the Blunder
Locals highlighted that not only has there been no school at the location for 15 years, but workmen had also painted the 'S' upside down. And they further criticised Stoke-on-Trent City Council for resurfacing a road that "didn't need doing" while neighbouring streets plagued with potholes were left untouched.
Ali Hassan, 72, a former property landlord who lives just a stone's throw from the sign, said: "There has not been a school here for 15 years - it moved and merged with another academy. 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 fix and who is going to pay for it? Will it be the taxpayer footing the bill for this? And also, who at the council was responsible in the first place. How do you make such an error?
"There's probably a guy sitting in an office behind a computer making lots of money and he doesn't have an idea what's going on. It's not even a converted school building, so doesn't resemble a school in any way, they flattened it and built 193 new houses around here.
"People are worried they might get a parking fine now for parking on their own street. It's truly bizarre. Also, they came out and resurfaced a road that didn't even need resurfacing.
"There's loads of potholes on the next street along, but they tarmac over this street and paint a sign for a school that doesn't exist. It's crazy and who knows how much it has cost and will now cost to put right. What a waste of paint and money."
Social Media Reaction
Residents also flocked to social media to voice their frustration, with many pointing out that the S had been painted upside down. One wrote: "Also I know this sounds crazy but the S is upside down!!!"
Another commented: "Didn't the workers doing it question it when they realised there was no school. You'd expect at least one to notice it." A third simply stated: "Simply unbelievable" while another added: "The stencil painter needs to go back to... School?"
Council Apologises
Jane Ashworth, leader at Stoke-on-Trent City Council, has apologised to residents and confirmed the authority would review the matter. She told the BBC there "clearly isn't a school" next to the sign and described the work as "a mess".
She 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."
