Children at Hazlehurst primary school in Ramsbottom, Bury, have been asked to note down the numbers of cars left parked on the zigzag lines outside their school.

Repeat offenders can expect a quiet word from headteacher Stuart Birtwell. And if that does not work, he plans to “name and shame” them.

Mr Birtwell, a magistrate, has discovered that the lines painted outside his and many other schools carry no statutory weight. Unless the local highway authority takes out an order, it is legal to park.

“My responsibility finishes at the school gate, but I am concerned about what happens outside,” Mr Birtwell said. “I’m just asking parents to use their common sense.”

The entrance to Hazlehurst is on a narrow side street, and teachers fear that parked cars can block access.

The issue came to a head when a pregnant woman was nearly hit by a car as she crossed the road near the school. Bury now plans to take out a no-parking order.

Mr Birtwell’s response, however, is not as drastic as one school’s. It arranged for a fire engine to show up, sirens blaring, at going-home time to show how access was blocked.