Living Streets charity mascot, Strider visited Priory Primary School in Brecon on Monday, 18 May, to kick off Walk to School Week 2026.

To get more children walking to school, Priory introduced The Walking Bus in September 2023.

Every Monday morning during term time, led by Head Teacher Claire Pugh and the Cluster Family Liaison Officer, Jan Smith, the bus picks up pupils from their parents at three designated ‘stops’ between the Uplands play area and their school.

The school initially spoke to families to gauge the possible need for The Walking Bus and looked at attendance records to see which day of the week might best support children getting to school on time.

The children, wearing their Hi-Vis jackets, walk in pairs, catching up on their weekend news. Staff comment that this is the highlight of their week and that it always starts them off on such a positive note, and on Monday morning they had a special surprise, being greeted by Strider as they arrived at the school gates.

In November 2025 Priory School started their collaboration with Living Streets and their WOW Sustainable Travel Tracker. The system is used by every pupil in school. Each morning, during registration, each pupils uses the Travel Tracker online to log how they travelled to school. Sustainable travel is encouraged where possible including walking, cycling and scooting to school. For children who sustainably travel, at least once every week, they are awarded a WOW badge at the end of the month.

In November 2025 53% of pupils logged that they were driven to school, in April 2026 this figure had dropped to just 35% of pupils.

“We recognise that some of our families in more rural areas, have a little choice but to travel by car, and we encourage them to park ten minutes away and stride the last section to school, at least once per week, if they are able,” said Cluster Family Liaison Officer, Jan Smith.

“The children are recognising the importance of travelling sustainably with regards to their own health and fitness alongside increased safety when traffic at the school gates can be reduced.

“To celebrate this and the start of Walk to School Week 2026, we are very lucky to have had a visit from Strider!”

Strider gained lots of recognition from children and parents, who were pleased to see him on a miserable Monday morning, and even took a few selfies with him!

Living Streets Cymru want to create a nation where walking is the natural choice for everyday.

Deryn Howell, Schools Coordinator for Living Streets Cymru said: “It was wonderful to see so many pupils from Priory Church in Wales Primary School out and about for Walk to School Week.

“Walk to School Week is a fantastic opportunity for families to try leaving the car at home and enjoy the health and happiness boosts that come from walking.

“We all lead busy lives, but the school run is the perfect opportunity to fit a bit more movement into our day, swapping out time spent in traffic for time spent together.”