Measures to improve road safety outside a school will receive full county council funding, it has been confirmed this week.

Money for new railings, a raised kerb and increased signage outside The Thomas Alleyne Academy in Stevenage will be paid for by Hertfordshire County Council (HCC) through its Safer Routes To School Fund.

A petition calling for the changes, set up by the school in October last year, received more than 800 signatures and followed a number of serious crashes on the stretch of road outside the school in High Street and James Way – including one in which the fence of a house next door was severely damaged.

Headteacher Mark Lewis said: “I’m delighted that action will be taken to ensure our community will be kept safe. I would like to thank all those who supported the petition – particularly those in the local media and both Stevenage Borough Council (SBC) and HCC.”

Stevenage county councillor Amanda King, who originally had planned to fund the changes using her own locality budget, said: “I’m glad to see such a strong example of democracy in action and think this is a fantastic example of people power. I am happy to have supported this campaign and hope I contributed to making it a success.”

SBC leader and Stevenage county councillor Sharon Taylor said: “There has been a huge amount of support from Old Town residents to carry out these vital safety improvements in order to improve safety for students, residents and visitors to the area. I am delighted we have been able to work together to help prevent any further accidents outside the school.”

Cllr Jim Brown, who represents the Old Town ward on SBC, added: “These vital measures were hard work to put in place, but the community came together to ensure it wasn’t kicked into the long grass.”

The changes are expected to be implemented before the next school term starts in September,