A ROAD safety scheme in Radcliffe has been allocated £200,000 to cut down on the number of child casualties.

The School Street area gives access to Radcliffe High School and has a history of mishaps, particularly at junctions along Lord Street and Abden Street.

Only one involving a child pedestrian has been recorded over the past three years, but a number have happened in nearby Water Street, Blackburn Street and Pilkington Way.

The proposal, announced at Monday's meeting of the town's area board, involved relocating the lorry park and using the present site as a youth zone to complement the skatepark and reduce the need for youngsters to travel outside the area. Pedestrian routes would also be improved and traffic calming measures introduced.

The funding is from the Department for Transport's Dealing with Disadvantage initiative.

Although none of the Radcliffe wards are within the top 10 per cent of nationally recognised deprived wards, Bury Council has secured funding by highlighting the high levels of child casualties in the central and south wards.

Tim Pyzniuk, from Bury Youth Service, said: "I think this will be a brilliant scheme. And it would be good to have a ball zone and play areas for young people in the area."