A HEADTEACHER has said she wants her school to be fully involved in the fight to beat the pollution that threatens her staff and pupils.

Tracey Ball, who is headteacher at Colnbrook’s Pippins Primary School, in Raymond Close, made the comment after a shock report in a Sunday newspaper revealed that her school was the second most polluted in the country.

The report said levels of nitrogen dioxide were nearly 50 times the national average around the school.

The report at the weekend added that more than 200 tons of N02 per square km each year are released annually around the school, largely from the nearby M4 motorway, but also with the influence of the M25 and Heathrow Airport.

Mrs Ball said: “We’re naturally concerned about reports of poor air quality at Pippins, as we place such importance on the health and wellbeing of our pupils and staff.

“We’re pleased to hear efforts are already underway to tackle the problem and we will be contacting the council and Heathrow to see how we can get involved.

"While we can’t change the location of the school, we can be involved in helping to find a solution.”

Slough Borough Council is responsible for the school. In a statement this week, the authority acknowledged a particular issue with pollution in the east of the borough but said air quality levels across Slough was regularly monitored, due to its proximity to the M4, the M25 and Heathrow.

The statement said steps being taken included asking for the speed limit to be reduced on the M4 near Slough.

The statement read: “We are also championing the use of electric and low emission vehicles. The council has its own pool of electric cars and we are leading the way in Berkshire, with 50 per cent of the county’s registered electric vehicles located in the borough.

“We will also be submitting a bid for funding from the Office for Low Emission Vehicles to provide a pool of electric vehicles for residents and some eco-friendly gas powered buses.”

Heathrow has been asked to fund charging points and an additional air quality monitoring device in the area.

According to the Sunday Times report, Colnbrook Primary School, in High Street, does not fare anywhere near as badly as Pippins in the study, but is also one of 3,000 schools said to be at risk.

The only school more at risk from pollution than Pippins was Moat Community College in Leicester where there is a reported 334 tons of N02 released per square km each year.