TENSIONS among parents and nearby residents at a primary school are reaching boiling point with claims some have been assaulted and spat on in rows over parking.

Irresponsible parking outside Prestonpans Infant School is causing tempers to flare, with the issue particularly bad on West Loan.

Prestonpans Community Council heard there had been a number of concerning incidents since pupils and staff returned following the summer break.

Andrew Stevenson, community councillor, said: “It is not a case of ‘if’ something happens but a case of when something happens. I have had to forcibly grab my son off the road because of the way people are parking and driving at the school.The welfare of our children should be a priority and parents need to take responsibility.”

Mr Stevenson called on East Lothian Council to fund more traffic wardens, saying the current team of four covering East Lothian was not enough.

He said the situation had become so heated there had been reports of physical altercations between residents and parents over parking spaces.

He said: “The council needs to find the funding to get more wardens there and it needs to be done now. There are a lot of angry people. There are parents getting spat on and attacked. We do not want it to escalate.”

Police who attended the meeting of Prestonpans Community Council said they would liaise with community wardens, officers and East Lothian Council’s anti-social behaviour team to ensure there was more of a presence around the school at peak times.

One officer said: “If it is getting heated it does no harm for police or wardens to show our face there.”

Jimmy Yule, community council vice-chairman, said police had carried out a purge on motorists outside the town’s St Gabriel’s Primary School earlier this year which had seen improvements there.

He said: “If there was an incident when the school is going in or coming out there is no way emergency services would get through West Loan.”

A council spokesman said: “We would always encourage motorists to park responsibly around East Lothian’s 41 schools, and to refrain from parking on entrances to driveways and yellow lines on junctions generally.

“We will happily consider any points put to us by the community council.”