A speed survey carried out with the help of Addingham schoolchildren recorded more than 150 vehicles exceeding the 20mph speed limit outside the village school.

Groups of classmates from Addingham Primary School used Ilkley Road Safety Committee’s Speed Indicating Device, or “SID”, to observe vehicle speeds on Bolton Road.

The exercise was an extension of the programme planned and developed by Addingham Civic Society and Ilkley Road Safety Committee to measure vehicle speeds at key positions in the village.

The device was set up on Bolton Road outside the school in the early morning, and remained in operation throughout the day.

The SID indicates vehicle speeds, accompanied by the familiar smile or frown, and data is also collected and stored for analysis.

The children now have the data which they collected personally and all the SID results to analyse statistically in the classroom.

Jonathan White, of Ilkley and District Road Safety Committee, said: “The statistics are interesting, particularly at the start and end of the working day.

“They serve to reinforce the picture emerging elsewhere in the village”.

Mr White revealed more than 150 vehicles were measured travelling at speeds more than 5mph above the legal limit outside the school during the day.

The schoolchildren spent a lot of time pulling out data from the results. Teachers say that this gave the children a real life opportunity to answer questions about data.

Headteacher Hilary Gallacher said: “Involving our children in collecting the data has helped to increase awareness within our school community around the importance of driving within the acceptable speed limit for the village. This is especially important on Bolton Road where so many children, young people and families gather.”

The measurement project will continue at other points in the village throughout the summer.

Once data have been collected and analysed, Addingham Civic Society and the Road Safety Group will report their own and the children’s findings to the highways authorities in the hope that any future traffic-calming measures deemed necessary will be implemented as soon as possible.

The police continue to be informed and involved at each stage.