A charity boss has criticised a decision not to install road safety measures to protect disabled workers near their place of work.

People employed by Clarity, a charity which provides work for disabled people producing cleaning and toiletry products at its factory in Jubilee Avenue, Highams Park, told the Guardian they fear for their lives getting to and from work. 

Jubilee Avenue is the main access road to for shoppers and delivery vehicles to a Tesco superstore, industrial units and more than 200 new homes. 

The 160-year-old charity moved into the area a year ago, and 70 of the 80 employees are disabled. 

Charity chief executive Jeremy Robinson said he was told last year that Waltham Forest council had agreed, "in principle" to install a pelican crossing across the busy road at the cost of £25,000, subject to funding. 

Chingford MP Iain Duncan-Smith described the road as "extremely dangerous for ordinary people."

But deputy leader Clyde Loakes has now said there is no plan for a crossing. 

"Between October 2010 and September 2013 there were 184 people killed or seriously injured on the borough’s roads and 1,650 slight injury accidents,” he said.

"There were no personal injury accidents recorded in or along Jubilee Way during that same period of time. 

"We have no plans to install a zebra crossing at this location at present. There are however a number of developments that are taking shape within the area and some potential for the cost of a crossing to be included within the scope of any section 106 agreements as and when they come to fruition.

"Accordingly we will keep this on the agenda."

Hale End and Highams Park councillor, Sheree Rackham, described the decision as “disgusting" and accused the council of "hiding behind outdated statistics" and spending funds from local developments elsewhere. 

Mr Robinson said the council’s position defied logic.

"It seems that the council are assessing the need for a crossing purely on the lack of accidents in the past,” he said.

"Surely it is the potential future risk of an accident that should be the determining factor, and this risk has increased significantly in the last 18 months. 

"It looks like there needs to be a serious incident before any action will happen; an incident that will almost certainly have been preventable."