We don’t always know our neighbours so you may not even realise that someone living close to you has the same regular school run. Wouldn’t it be great to share?
Many parents’ working days are cut short by the need to do the school run and so by pairing up with another family to share it you could be freeing up so much time, saving money… and helping reduce your environmental impact. Lift-sharing can also be linked in with other inititiatives such as ‘park and stride’ so you are getting even more benefit.
The easiest way to start is to ask around other parents who you know in your neighbourhood if they can share the school run with you. If you have no luck, ask the school as they may be able to pass your request on to families who live near you; then it’s up to them to get in touch with you.
Make sure your child is introduced to the other family and both you and your child are happy for your child to travel with them… parents have been doing this for years as an informal arrangement.
All the children involved need to be clear on what is expected of them behaviour-wise… different drivers may have different rules, eg do they allow passengers to eat during the trip. The children need to understand they must not distract the driver and must wear a seatbelt.
Make sure you all have each others contact details and are clear about pick up/drop off arrangements. If you need to cancel let each other know as soon as possible.
If you are a school and want to encourage lift-sharing and more collaboration between parents in general, take a look at the Homerun app to help you get organised.
If you are a teacher (or anyone over 18) and want to find a lift-share to work, sign up free to Liftshare, the social enterprise set up to enable lift-sharing in the UK. www.liftshare.com