THE safety of pupils at Largs Campus is being put at risk by poor traffic management, a public meeting in the town has heard.

Largs Community Council (LCC) was told that a traffic management plan for the site still isn't working properly - five years after the campus opened.

LCC heard that members of the public have approached the organisation with concerns around traffic at the end of the school day - particularly school buses leaving the campus at the same time as children are leaving on foot.

And a North Coast councillor labelled the lack of a properly functioning management plan for the campus "ridiculous".

Local councillors for the area are now planning to visit the campus once the new school term begins to assess the scale of the problem for themselves.

LCC chairman Jim Phillips said: "The school buses are coming in and out of the school at the same time as kids are coming out. I have been approached by a few members of the public with concerns.

"It needs to be addressed fairly quickly."

North Ayrshire councillor Tom Marshall asked at the meeting whether there is supposed to be a separate entrance and exit for school buses.

Mr Phillips said it was his understanding that this is case, but on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays, "buses were coming in and out at the same time as school children", and he had been approached by members of the public fearing that there could be an accident.

Cllr Marshall said: "The original plan was there would be a separate drop off zone for the kids, and pedestrian traffic would come in another way."

LCC member Patricia Perman asked: "Did they not send the buses round the back way?"

Cllr Ian Murdoch responded: "The buses access the site at what was the old field entrance between the buildings, and it comes out on a separate lane on the exit."

Cllr Marshall said he wanted a clearer understanding of what the problem actually is so it could be assessed.

Cllr Murdoch said: "Largs Community Council and myself strongly opposed the fact that the school was going to be built without a traffic management plan in place and they said it would be put in place afterwards.

"We challenged it at the time, and I have raised it at the full North Ayrshire Council meeting.

"The traffic management plan still doesn't work - it is ridiculous."

Mr Phillips said was similarly disappointed in the lack of vision for a traffic plan at the school in advance of the school being built over five years ago, and said: "I asked why there wasn't a plan in place at the time, and didn't get a satisfactory response.

"The traffic management issue needs to be brought back to the forefront."

North Coast Cllr Tom Marshall said: "We need to establish first exactly what the problem is - and we need to go and have a look at it."

Cllr Ian Murdoch agreed with his colleague and said: "Firstly we need evidence to take a case forward to the council. We need the facts."

A North Ayrshire Council spokesperson said: “There haven’t been any changes to the original arrangements for buses entering/leaving the campus and we are not aware of any issues at the school.

“We will monitor the situation when the schools return and ensure that the plans are being adhered to.”