Sustaining a Walking School Bus program
This section describes how to keep a Walking School Bus program going. The buses run on motivation and enthusiasm, so you need to keep the momentum going. Developing strong local ownership of the bus by the school and the community will ensure it is still going – well down the track.
The Walking School Bus is just one of a range of Active & Safe Travel to School programs.
What makes a great Walking School Bus?
Tips from some successful Walking School Bus programs.
Commitment from schools
Most coordinators say that strong support from leaders of various agencies and schools assists the implementation. It is far easier to get the project going if there is strong support from a principal and if there is a designated contact person within the school.
Support from the council/supporting agency
Support from across the council or supporting agency is essential and provides a healthy foundation from which to develop the project. Read about the role of a supporting agency in the 'How to start a Walking School Bus' section.
Word of mouth
Promotion of the project is crucial to recruiting children and volunteers. Word of mouth is seen as the most effective way of promoting the project to parents and students. Promotional activities range from talks at school assemblies, notices in school newsletters and morning and afternoon teas.
Publicity and promotion
To ensure the uptake and sustainability of a Walking School Bus Program, continual and innovative publicity and promotional activities are crucial, including marketing the program locally by accessing many groups and local organisations.
Weather
The weather can affect the enthusiasm of participants. It is preferable not to start the buses in winter, but some council areas have overcome this by providing umbrellas for the children.
Built environment
The built environment can have a real influence on the implementation of the buses. The existence of arterial roads, lack of safe pedestrian crossings, and street design features such as cul-de-sacs, courts and indirect walkways provide challenging obstacles.
Involving traffic engineers in the auditing of routes helps with the identification of hazards and can facilitate minor infrastructure repairs in the area. See the VicHealth report: It’s more than just walking!
VicRoads can reset the ‘green man’ timing on traffic lights at pedestrian crossings if the existing timing is not adequate for groups of children to cross safely. Some councils have made significant alterations to crossing design and traffic light timing as a direct response to the needs of the Walking School Bus. This benefits the general public as well.
For examples of very successful modifications of crossings in some council areas, see The Greenlight Project (PDF)
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Keeping the bus on the road
Name the bus
Give the bus a name – something the children identify with, either at school or in their area. Run competitions for students to come up with Walking School Bus names and / or mascot ideas. Use school newsletters and assemblies to raise the profile of the buses.
Travelcards and certificates
‘Travelcards’ can be used to motivate participants. Bus drivers can stamp or mark off on the travelcard every time a child walks with the bus. Every 10, 20, 30, 40 etc walks can be rewarded with a certificate or a small prize. Travelcards could also be used as a ‘Walkathon’ fundraiser for the school with children sponsored for each walk.
Another idea is to use certificates to congratulate children for using the Walking School Bus. School assemblies provide a good opportunity to present these certificates.
Theme days
Dress up for Easter, Halloween or Christmas. Wear poppies on ANZAC Day, red noses on Red Nose Day or footy colours in Grand Final week. Make up your own theme day. Some buses have had ‘gumboot’ days and ‘sneaker’ days. You might like to have a ‘silly hat’ day, a ‘shades’ day or something slightly more serious like a ‘caring for the environment’ day.
Tell other people about the bus
What has been happening on the bus in your area or at your school? School newsletters and council bulletins can remind others that the Walking School Bus is operating in their area, and is free to use.
The schools and council/supporting agency could hold poster competitions to promote walking and cycling to school.
Make the bus fun
- Drivers and conductors can help make the bus fun: play ‘I-Spy’, or talk about what it was like to walk to school when you were a kid (especially if it’s the same school you went to). School classes can have colouring-in or word puzzle activities for homework that reinforce the fun of the Walking School Bus.
- Get prominent locals or celebrities to join the Bus occasionally; e.g., police, sports star or local councillor. Don’t forget to take photos for the school newsletter and council bulletin.
- Inform the local paper, who are always looking for items of local interest.
Ongoing running costs and sponsorship
The cost of running a Walking School Bus is relatively low. However, both the school and council/supporting agency need to make sure that any costs and resources can be met.
To help sustain a Walking School Bus, consider asking local businesses to sponsor one by donating suitable branded merchandise: eg, kids sunhats, umbrellas. Alternatively, sponsors can be acknowledged in council bulletins, school newsletters and so on.
Under strict VicHealth guidelines, sponsorship of the VicHealth-trademarked Walking School Bus program by organisations connected with tobacco, alcohol, processed food and soft drink is prohibited. Please contact VicHealth if you are unsure of the suitability of a potential sponsor.
Evaluation
Parents, schools and councils want to know that the program is running successfully, so consider annual surveys. Get feedback from all participants, especially the children.
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Retaining volunteers
This is one of the most important and challenging parts of keeping a Walking School Bus going. The importance of keeping volunteers motivated cannot be underestimated, since without them, there is no program. Below are some ideas to keep your volunteers interested, and to acknowledge the crucial role they play.
Acknowledgement
Make sure you acknowledge and reward the work that is being done. Conduct Walking School Bus morning teas/lunches or an end-of-year BBQ to recognise the work done and the milestones achieved. Invite volunteers from all of the Walking School Bus projects in all of the schools in the area.
Bigger picture
Let the volunteers know how crucial they are to the program. Fill them in on the bigger picture – illustrate how large the program is across Victoria and how much they are contributing to it.
Communication
Keep communication flowing between the volunteers, the school and the council. Encourage the volunteers to speak up if they have any concerns or ideas.
Community profile
Give the volunteers a community profile. Hand out award certificates/gifts/gift vouchers at council corporate events. Involve the mayor, councillor or high-profile community members to make the event special.
Certificates/flowers
Hand out certificates or flowers to volunteers at school assemblies. Involve the children who walk on the buses and their parents, the principal and other teachers.
Volunteer profiles
Produce fun, informal community profiles of volunteers to be included in a newsletter, eg: 'This month’s featured volunteer walker is Elsie Smith. Elsie has lived in this town for 50 years and loves walking with the kids'. This will help identify the walkers for the children, allay fears about 'stranger danger', and assist in developing trust between the children and unknown adults.
Celebrate
Encourage a community spirit – think about ways of celebrating the project so that people feel connected and valued.
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Making it fun for children
We all know that the key to Walking School Buses are the children. You will need to attract them to the bus and make walking the best fun it can be. Go to the Resources section for some ideas, games and competitions that have been used to get the kids on board.