Do you have to stop for a school crossing patrol?

The rule is tied to the sign, and the Code gives the law behind it: section 28 of the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984. Where the children are does not change it. While the patrol is holding the sign up, you stay stopped.

The last child reaching the far pavement is not the end of it, because the patrol is still standing in the road. Wait until they are out of the road and the sign is lowered, and only then move off.

• “I will be past before they step out.” You MUST stop anyway, and you would be driving close by a patrol standing in the road.
• “The children are past my side now.” The patrol is still out there with the sign up, and you would have to pass close to them to get by.

A patrol at a school gate with a group of children beside them is your warning, and it can come before the sign goes up. Ease off as soon as you see it, so you can stop well back and in good time. Keep watching the children too. If they are looking the other way, they may step out without seeing you.

Do not overtake as you approach a school crossing patrol.

Practice marks only: on a real test, the examiner decides. How faults work.

• You did not stop for the school crossing patrol Dangerous fault

  You MUST stop when a school crossing patrol shows a "Stop for children" sign, even if you think you would be past before the children step out. You drove close by the patrol standing in the road.

• You drove on while the sign was still up Serious fault

  You MUST stop when a school crossing patrol shows a "Stop for children" sign. You moved off with the patrol still in the road holding it up, and passed close by: stay stopped until the sign is lowered.

• Rule 210: You MUST stop when a school crossing patrol shows a ‘Stop for children’ sign

MUST and MUST NOT are the law. Should is advice, which can still be used in evidence in court.

DVSA driving skills: Pedestrian crossings, Other traffic, Anticipation and planning.

• Do you have to stop for someone waiting at a zebra crossing?
• What does flashing amber mean at a pelican crossing?
• Do you have to give way to a bus pulling out?
• Who has priority on a narrow road with parked cars?