All Saints’ School in Gresford has become the first school in Wrexham to achieve the prestigious Gold Active Travel Award after five years of pupil-led commitment to promoting active journeys to and from school.
The Gold Award recognises schools that have demonstrated an ongoing commitment to promoting active and sustainable travel over several years, resulting in significant and lasting organisational, cultural and behavioural changes.
For All Saints, the award marks the culmination of a journey that began in 2021 and has seen active travel become an important part of everyday school life.
Class teacher Mrs Shelmerdine has led the school’s Active Travel journey from the beginning, working alongside a dedicated team of Active Travel Champions. The Champions are peer-elected pupils, with one child representing each Key Stage 2 class, giving children a genuine voice and leadership role in encouraging their friends to make healthier and more sustainable journeys to school.
The Active Travel Champions have shown remarkable enthusiasm and commitment throughout the journey. They have developed a deep understanding of why active journeys matter — not only for physical health, but also for mental wellbeing and for reducing the environmental impact of school journeys on their local area.
The school has supported this pupil-led approach through a programme of activities and initiatives designed to encourage more families to walk, cycle and scoot to school. Regular Scoot to School and Bike Bus events have become an important part of the school calendar, with parents playing a vital role by volunteering to help make these events possible.
The strength of support from the wider school community has been central to All Saints’ success. Parents have embraced the school’s active travel initiatives, helping to create a culture in which walking, cycling and scooting are seen not simply as occasional activities, but as positive and sustainable ways of travelling to school.
The school’s active travel work has also included participation in national initiatives such as Big Walk and Wheel and Cycle to School Week, alongside road-safety activities and opportunities for pupils to develop their confidence and skills as active travellers.
The Gold Award recognises not just the number of activities taking place, but the lasting change they have helped create within the school community.
Richard Hatwood, Headteacher, commented ‘I am delighted that the school has gained this award and am very grateful to Mrs Shelmerdine for her excellent leadership in this area, to our pupils for their engagement and to our parents and carers for supporting us’.
For the Active Travel Champions, the Gold Award represents recognition of something they have helped build themselves. Through peer leadership, enthusiasm and a strong sense of responsibility, the children have helped make active travel part of the culture of All Saints.
The school also acknowledges the contribution of its governors and the wider school community in supporting the long-term commitment to active and sustainable travel.
Mrs Shelmerdine said “Our pupils have been at the very heart of our journey to achieving the Active Travel Gold Award. They have worked incredibly hard and shown such focus, commitment and belief in what we have been trying to achieve. Their energy and enthusiasm have truly permeated the whole school, inspiring pupils, staff, parents and governors alike. We are incredibly proud that their hard work and dedication over several years, has resulted in this wonderful achievement. To be the first school in Wrexham to achieve the Gold Award is a tremendous honour, and we are incredibly proud to be leading the way for other schools across Wrexham.”
As the first school in Wrexham to achieve the Sustrans Active Travel Gold Award, All Saints’ School Gresford is proud to have demonstrated how sustained, whole-school commitment can lead to meaningful and lasting change.
The school now intends to build on this achievement, continuing to empower pupils to become active travel ambassadors and encouraging even more children and families to choose healthier, greener ways to travel.
