A PARENT whose four-year-old son suffered a nasty gash to his forehead after slipping on an icy pavement has called for the council to provide more grit to his son’s school.

Noah Downes had to be taken to hospital via ambulance after the fall on his way to Shirley Manor Primary School in Wyke on Wednesday.

Shirley Manor has been in a three-year battle with Bradford Council to get more grit to put on pavements leading to the school, including some on a sharp slope, due to the dangers posed by ice to pupils and parents.

It currently only gets enough grit to cover the school entrance, while the roads around the school are on the Council’s Priority 2 gritting route, but this doesn’t include pavements.

It has been calling on parents to lobby the Council for more grit to be provided to make the pavements around the school safer and avoid more injuries like Noah’s.

Noah’s father, Anthony Sykes, said they were walking to school on Wednesday morning when Noah slipped and fell just off Tor Avenue.

He sustained a nasty gash to his head, but the injury could have been much worse as Noah has a brain condition – external hydrocephalus, fluid around the brain and skull – which means any fall could have extremely serious, even fatal consequences for Noah, who only turned four a few days ago.

Ant said the school helped to clean him up and called for an ambulance, and apart from being in pain and restless is otherwise fine.

Ant said the road can be dangerous in snow and ice, and the school has been asking for more grit for three years. Yesterday, a message was circulated to parents asking them to demand the roads around the school be gritted to avoid any more accidents.

Heather Lacey, headteacher at Shirley Manor Primary, said: “We’re really relieved that one of our pupils is okay after falling in icy conditions.

“Roads and pathways have been very treacherous around school and we have stressed the need for everyone to take care. 

“We have been requesting for a number of years now for the streets outside school to be gritted, as our school is on a hill and is hazardous in snow and icy conditions.

“We know the Council can’t grit every street, but parents can ask that roads are gritted through the Council’s online form, which they did yesterday.

“More grit bins on the street for residential use, and the roads around school being placed on the priority gritting route, would make sure our children, parents and staff can get to school safely and we can avoid accidents like yesterday.”

Bradford Council has been approached for comment.