FAMILIES living near the site of a proposed Fife Council nursery say the plans are going to make an existing parking nightmare even worse.

Fife Council has applied for permission to build a nursery with associated play areas and car-parking on the site of the former Pitcorthie Primary School.

The proposal, if given the go-ahead, will see the provision of nursery schooling for up to 106 children with 24 full-time staff.

Although not against the actual nursery plan, householders living nearby have raised concerns that the facility will add to their existing congestion with cars travelling to Canmore Primary School.

Gillan Brennan, who lives in Calaisburn Place, has started a petition which she plans to present to Fife Council.

"We are not against the nursery," she said. "We are against the fact that they have not made any allowances for parents dropping off their three- to five-year-olds. There is more than enough room at the side of the school to put a car park in.

"Where I am is a dead-end street and we struggle enough for parking. Then there are all the parents across the road at Canmore who park here. At 9am and 3pm we can't get in or out of our own street and now they are putting a nursery in.

"At the moment, we mark it on our calendar when the kids are getting holidays. This will be all year.

"There was a problem in our street when both schools were up and running and an old lady took not well and died in the house. The ambulance came to the house and had to park halfway down the street. They had to bring her out and halfway down the street.

"There is no way ambulances or fire engines can get to the bottom of the street when all the cars are there. It is not safe. The impact on us is absolutely horrendous.

"We are talking about 120 kids so not all of these will be able to walk to school. We are not against the nursery – we need one. All we are looking for is 25 parking spaces where at least parents can drop their kids off safely.

Fellow homeowner Fenella Hamilton, who is renovating her property in Aberdour Road before she moves in, said Fife Council's proposals were "utterly stupid".

She added: "There are 24 parking spaces for the staff. The transport statement seems to be relying entirely on public transport and parents walking their children.

"While it might be a worthy aim to have every child walk to school, ignoring reality is not the answer. Making no provision for those that will be brought by car will force these cars to park on the main thoroughfare and side streets, causing congestion, nuisance to neighbours and putting children at risk.

"This is what happened when cars coming to Pitcorthie Primary parked in unsuitable side streets. It is still happening with Canmore Primary and will be made worse."

Dawn Cook, Fife Council team manager (capital programme), said the site was being developed to provide a new nursery facility which will help them meet the requirements of the Early Learning and Childcare expansion to 1,140 hours.

“As part of the development of the project, careful consideration has been given to the external areas, including car-parking," she said. "The car park has been designed for staff and visitors in accordance with Fife Council Transportation guidelines.

“The council does not provide facilities for pupil drop-off or collection within its car parks at schools or nurseries. A school travel plan will be developed for this facility that will promote walking to and from the nursery. This is an approach that encourages sustainable travel choices, prepared by schools and nurseries in conjunction with parents and carers, exploring options to make the journey to and from school as healthy as possible.”