It was in York in 1985 that I first came across a lollipop lady. This happened on one day when we had gone to pick up Pushkin from his school – Fishergate Primary. Two of the mothers whom Specky, my wife, was able to identify, were wearing yellow fluorescent jackets with reflective strips and they also had on a matching bucket-style hat. They were carrying a large round STOP sign with letters in black and a background of bright yellow, perched on a pole and it looked like a giant lollipop.
‘Why are they dressed up like that?’ I asked another mother.
She said, ‘Oh! They’re the lollipop ladies for this week. They are the quiet guardians of the crosswalk.’
Much later I learnt that there are lollipop ladies and lollipop men because anyone can volunteer for this task of helping school children cross the road. Let me add here that the UK does have Walk signs and pedestrian crossings with lights. There are zebra crossings, pelican crossings, puffin crossings (yes, really!), and the classic green man that tells you when it’s safe to go. But lollipop ladies and men aren’t just there to tell you when to cross. They’re there to make sure it’s truly safe, especially for children, who are still learning how the world works.
The concept exists even today, and one can watch this concept working if one is out there near some school where small children need to cross the road. Tourism, for instance, is not just about buying a ticket and going up Tower Bridge. It is all about discovering little secrets of life in a different country. The lollipop ladies – and lollipop men – represent visibility, safety, and care. They give a message to those hundreds of small children: ‘I’m here.” You’re safe’. Yes, the quirks of the crossing patrol are all about the queue of little feet. These wonderful people quilted in yellow and quietly holding the line tell a quintessentially kind tale to every one of us.
The concept is British in origin and was not a result of parliamentary debates but all about community care and necessity. One of these lollipop people knew a bit about the history of the concept. ‘Mary Hunt was a caretaker in Bath,’ she said, ‘And, I believe, this was in 1930 that she took it upon herself to help children cross the road.’ All that a good movement needs is the right spark… and this flame did light up streets across Britain. The movement, however, got acceleration in post-WWII East London. Some records point out that the voices in favor were strongest in Barking and Dagenham as the roads had become more dangerous for children. It was Dorothy Pummel and Jock Brining who enlisted retired servicemen and pensioners to guide children across chaotic roads. These volunteers wore white coats, peaked hats, and carried signs. This was how the ‘lollipop’ movement truly took shape. The School Crossing Patrol Act of 1953 made caring for children a civic duty because even a seemingly small act of holding up a sign and stopping traffic for children to cross the road, can mean the world. This movement has been functional for over 70 years now and one can see resolute individuals safeguarding generations of children in Britain. The term ‘lollipop’ is probably because of the distinctive circular sign held up patrol officers. Some reports point out that the sign was rectangular initially and became circular in the 1960s. A decade later, the movement was introduced to high visibility coats.
Statistics surrounding the lollipop movement are interesting as they suggest that it is the budgets of the local councils that may lead to an increase or decrease in the personnel involved. For instance, the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham maintains patrols at several key locations, including Paddenswick Road and Munster Road. Similarly, the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames provides school crossing patrols to assist pedestrians at designated sites. These variations, I believe, depend entirely on the number of schools, traffic conditions, and local council policies.
As one delves deeper into some concept, interesting facts emerge… and I discovered Sheila Gallagher served as a Lollipop Lady in the City of London from 1991 to 2000 near St. Paul’s Cathedral. Her uniform is now displayed in the London Museum.
I think the lollipop movement is what even developing nations need to adopt. We know how dangerous the traffic movements are these days even in tier II and tier III towns in India… the bigger cities are far more riskier for children. It is time for India to implement such concepts.
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Arvind Passey
uploaded on 19 April 2025
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