PARENTS have warned a child will be killed if something is not done about lorries blocking a Cowley school route.

Car dealership Swan Motor Centre was demolished in November by developer Watkin Jones to make way for 144 new student flats in Between Towns Road.

Planning permission had been granted a few months earlier and construction work is now set to start.

But parents from nearby Our Lady's Roman Catholic Primary School have raised concerns over the number of lorries going to and from the site, as well as rumours a cabin related to the development will be built on school grounds.

At some points of the day there are queues of four or five lorries waiting to go into the site.

Anne Marie Lindus, whose six-year-old daughter Mia attends the school, said: "The road is so busy and a lot of parents, including myself, are really worried about the amount of lorries going by all the time.

"A child is going to get injured or killed if something isn't done."

Luke Ejodamen, whose seven-year-old daughter Peace is a pupil, agreed.

He said: “It’s really dangerous when you are taking your child to school.”

The father of two said parents were also worried about a cabin related to the development which the Oxford Mail understands will be erected at the back of the school and have created a petition opposing it.

Mr Ejodamen said: "We’ve heard they are putting some sort of office or canteen there and parents are not happy that we haven’t been consulted about this at all.

"We've already got more than 50 signatures."

When the original application was submitted by Watkin Jones, Our Lady's registered an objection to the development, citing concerns the student accommodation would overlook the school.

A statement issued by the school did not comment on any structure on school land but said there was now a 'positive working relationship' with developers, adding: "This is not a development on the school site but clearly something we take seriously.

"The safety of our children remains our highest priority at Our Lady’s Catholic Primary School and has always been at the forefront of any discussions during both the planning stages and the commencement of the build by the Watkin Jones Group.

"Over the past 18 months our school staff, governors and the Archdiocese of Birmingham have formed a positive working relationship with the developers.

"We are in day to day contact with senior site staff and any concerns raised are addressed immediately and effectively."

Mike Skinner from Watkin Jones, who is based at the site, said the he was 'well aware' of complaints about lorries from residents but said no parents from Our Lady's had approached him with concerns.

He added: "We are complying with all the conditions of the application, HGVs only come after 9.30am and I have no deliveries on site between 2.30pm and 3.30pm."

Explaining photographs showing lorries lined up along the road, he said: "What you don't see is they were gone three minutes later.

"They are there for very short periods of time."

Watkin Jones submitted a construction management plan to Oxford City Council in October outlying how it proposed to proceed with building work.

It stated: "To avoid congestion of delivery vehicles and blockages of nearby roads, deliveries will be scheduled and any clashes will be dealt with by requesting drivers to wait at a nearby safe area away from the site and traffic."

"All footpaths and walkways surrounding the perimeter of the site boundary will remain unimpeded from construction activities at all times."

East Oxford MP Anneliese Dodds said there was an issue with road safety around schools in the city in general.

She said: "In Oxford you have a lot of primary and secondary schools that are already on very busy roads so when you add large vehicles to that it is understandable parents would be concerned.

"I would hope developers would be mindful of these worries and work with parents to ensure their concerns are taken on board."

The city council did not respond to a request for comment.