PUPILS from Clackmannan Primary School took to the streets and danced the conga in celebration of traffic-free roads on Monday.

The party marked the conclusion of the School Streets Project, which is designed to encourage children to walk or cycle to school, improve pupil road safety and promote responsible parking.

As well as the streets being closed to non-resident vehicles between the times of 8.30am and 9.10am, and 2.50pm and 3.20pm, changes have also included widened footways and cycle parking.

Monday's event, hosted by the school in partnership with Clackmannanshire Council and Living Streets Scotland, saw the road closed between 8.30am and 11.30am and instead used for play sports and walking activities.

Rebcca Simpson, schools project manager for Living Streets Scotland, said: "More children walking to school is better for our local environment and for the health and happiness of our children.

"School street closures are a great way to enable and encourage more families to walk to school so they can start enjoying these benefits.

"It’s fantastic to see schemes like the Clackmannan School Streets project becoming more widespread and to see the results they’re having – it’s only right that we’re celebrating it today."

Since the project's implementation in August, there has been a number of positive results including a 100 per cent increase in the number of pupils cycling or scooting to school, an 11.5 per cent shift to active travel modes and a 70 per cent reduction in reported car journeys.

Councillor Graham Lindsay, education spokesperson for Clackmannanshire Council, said: "The safety of our communities is a key priority for the council, and in our discussions with the local community, they let us know that they wanted us to look at how road safety around Clackmannan Primary could be improved.

"As part of the wider £5million investment that is being made to regenerate and improve Clackmannan, we were able to introduce this School Streets project.

"I am encouraged by the positive feedback we’ve already had from parents and children, showing that this project is helping achieve a safer and more pleasant environment for everyone using the street whilst maintaining access for residents, businesses, pedestrians and cyclists."