Concerns have been raised about parking outside Lothersdale Primary School at drop-off and pick-up times.

Coun Stephen Cohen, chairman of Lothersdale Parish Council, said parking had always been a major problem.

“It’s unfortunate but the road gets very narrow right in front of the school,” he said. “Yellow zigzag lines were installed last year, but some people are still using that area to park their cars.

“This no-parking area was designed to create a parking-free segment of the road that would allow people to pass. Otherwise cars coming up the road are meeting cars coming down it.

“We’ve asked the police to enforce the parking restrictions. A few recalcitrant parents need to be slapped with a fine to encourage others not to park there.”

Lothersdale resident and former parish councillor Catherine Gott said she was most concerned about the speed of traffic through the village.

“A few people need to be a little more patient and considerate,” she said.

In a joint statement, headteacher Jo Robinson and the school governors said: “Lothersdale is unique in being a village extending along a single main access road which in places is reduced in width to a single track by parked cars.

“The school is a major part of the community and it is unfortunate that for the fairly short periods at the start and finish of the school day the road can become congested.

“The school appreciates that this can cause some inconvenience – we continue to highlight the problem to our parents and visitors via newsletters and direct communication from the school governors and are encouraging a parent-led walking bus.

“North Yorkshire highways applied yellow ‘School Keep Clear' markings outside the school gates in April 2013 in order to help the traffic flow and the school continues to support their efforts to police this zone.”