A pupil from St. Mary’s Primary School has seen their health and safety poster for the Penny Pie Park footbridge construction site made into an official sign and installed on-site following a competition.

CR Reynolds’ Safety Health Environment and Quality and Integrated Management System Coordinator Chris Butts announced the competition during a health and safety talk at the school before Christmas, where he spoke to the pupils about the dangers of construction sites.

The entries received were of such high quality that CR Reynolds increased the award criteria from first, second and third across the school to a winning entry for each year group, together with an overall winner. Each year group winner received a £10 Amazon voucher.

The winning entry from Year 6 was named overall winner, and as well as the creator receiving a £20 Amazon voucher, their design has been placed at either end of the construction site on Pogmoor Recreation Ground and Penny Pie Park.

The results were presented in a special assembly on Friday 20 January, along with the winners’ parents.

Councillor Robert Frost, Cabinet spokesperson for Regeneration and Culture, said: “Health and safety at construction sites is of the highest priority, so it was fantastic to see such excellent levels of engagement from the children around this important subject.

“The posters were brilliant and showed a great understanding and application of what they learned during the talk from CR Reynolds.

“Congratulations to all of the winners, particularly the overall winner. Their poster will proudly sit at either end of the construction site and be one of the first things workers and passers-by see when they look at the site.

“I’d like to thank Chris Butts and CR Reynolds for running the competition and providing such generous prizes for the children.”

Construction work is underway on the footbridge, which will:

• Connect two existing public green spaces currently divided by the Sheffield-Huddersfield railway line. 
• Provide connectivity links between two community areas of Dodworth and Pogmoor (wards Old Town and Dodworth). 
• Provide a safe crossing point for children going to and from Horizon Community College and the wider general public, which does not exist currently. 
• Provide a safe active travel route for the residents of the borough and promote more walking and cycling. 
• Help address the Network Rail recorded incidents of trespassing on the line, improving safety for children in the Barnsley area. 
• Complement and enhance the delivery of the A628 Dodworth Road and Broadway Junction Improvement scheme, which is vital to support our future business and housing growth plans, and improve access to our new town centre. 

Further information and updates will follow through the construction process.