It is estimated that over 1 million people attend emergency departments across England and Wales with head injuries annually. Between 33% and 50% of hospital attendees are under the age of 15, highlighting how prevalent head injuries are in young people.  Many of these recover well without the need for medical intervention, however, it can be life-changing for some sufferers.

One cause of head injuries is road accidents. Unfortunately, road safety is not an innate sense that we are born with, so it needs to be taught. Here is why road safety education is so important.

Why road safety education matters

You may think that teaching road safety is about memorising rules, but it goes much further than that. Nurturing a sense of responsibility and awareness goes a long way in life, not just around our roads.

By teaching road safety, you are encouraging your children valuable skills such as risk assessment, following instructions and keeping focused in hectic environments. These are transferrable to other areas of their lives and well into the future.

Children often travel to school and go out with friends as they get older, so equipping them with the skills to keep safe is essential. Encouraging independence for travel helps to build confidence around their whole being.

Road safety’s main aim is to reduce accidents and injuries. Teaching kids to respect the road as well as how to cross safely, for example, reduces incidents and keeps kids safe.

The parent’s role in teaching road safety

As parents, the responsibility to teach your little ones everything can feel a bit overwhelming at times. Road safety can be integrated into everyday life, so it feels less like a lesson and more natural.

Starting early is key to grasping the basics. Even when your kids are babies, narrating what you are doing when you cross the road or identifying road signs can help them understand the idea of safety and road signs. Making these actions as normal as possible helps kids to learn and copy.

There are plenty of interactive songs and games which you can introduce to your children about road safety. Sometimes a catchy tune really helps to drive the point home!

The potential impact of road accidents

Even the most conscientious and aware child can be involved in an accident. Accidents can be devastating as the resulting injuries can be serious.

If your child is involved in a road traffic accident which results in a brain injury, it is imperative that you seek legal advice. Specialist brain injury claims solicitors will be able to help you navigate the legal complexities of making sure your child receives the care and compensation they deserve.

Children of all ages are at risk of being hurt or killed when walking near roads. On average, six children are killed or seriously injured on roads in Britain every day – that’s equivalent to a whole classroom of children every week.

By signing up to Brake’s Kids Walk, schools and educators can access a FREE action pack featuring lesson plans, assemblies, activities, and posters, all brightly illustrated and featuring the popular Shaun the Sheep characters by Aardman. As well as teaching children vital road safety skills, Brake’s Kids Walk raises awareness among parents and other adults of the need to protect children on our roads. Posters and demonstration materials highlight what children need to be able to walk safely in their communities: they need footpaths, cycle paths, safe places to cross, and slow and clean traffic.

Brake, the road safety charity, has been running walking events for schoolchildren at a national level for more than 15 years. The charity is also behind Road Safety Week – the UK’s biggest road safety campaign each November.

All schools and education communities are invited to sign up to Brake’s Kids Walk 2021 at www.brake.org.uk/kidswalk.

Brake’s Kids Walk 2021 is sponsored by esure.

Scott Williams, head of programme delivery at Brake, said: “It’s every child’s right to be able to walk in their community without fear of traffic and pollution. Throughout the pandemic families have taken to the streets on foot and by bike and we hope these activities will continue as restrictions lift and ordinary road traffic returns. It is vital that children are able to walk safely in the places where they live. This year we hope to inspire as many children, schools and families as possible through our Brake’s Kids Walk event.”

David McMillan, CEO at esure Group added: “We are thrilled to have partnered with Brake to sponsor this year’s event as we believe in the importance of road safety for children everywhere. We want to be a force for good and make a real difference by focusing on better and safer driving. Brake’s Kids Walk is an important opportunity to raise awareness about road safety messages.”

The largest number of pupils took part in the 10-day challenge to date, with 559,629 participants walking, scooting or cycling the equivalent of 11.9 million miles – that’s 50 trips to the moon and back or 480 trips around the world.

Forty of the participating schools, working with Sustrans and their local authority, trialled School Streets where they closed their streets to motor vehicles during pick up and drop off times, to create a safer, car-free environment for families to cycle, walk and scoot.

Overall the number of sustainable trips prevented 4.7 million car journeys, saving parents an estimated £1.6 million on petrol.

Xavier Brice, Sustrans for CEO, said: “This year’s Big Pedal saw the highest number of pupils and parents take part since we first launched the competition back in 2010. This is a fantastic achievement, which tells us that children want to cycle, scoot and walk to school.

“It also demonstrates there’s a growing public awareness of the effects of motor emissions and the role more walking and cycling can play in reducing them. But to make it easier for parents and pupils to continue travel by bike and foot, the roads outside schools need to feel safe. One of the best ways to do this is by making streets outside the school gates car free.

“That’s why we are calling on national governments to support local authorities to enforce School Streets and implement clean air legislation to tackle motorised traffic, including large-scale investment in walking and cycling.”

Claudine Richardson, Bike It Champion at St Richard Reynolds Catholic College said: “We decided to take part in the Big Pedal this year as a survey of our students revealed that air pollution and congestion outside the school gate was a big concern.

“During the competition we saw a huge surge in the number of pupils walking, scooting or cycling to school and this has continued even after the challenge. It is fantastic to see the pupils come in so energised in the morning after a brisk walk or cycle.”

The 10-day challenge saw more than 1,682 schools take part in the competition.

The switch to an active journey to school burnt over 226 million calories in total, which is the equivalent of 936,704 donuts.

Currently almost a third (28%) of all children aged two to 15 in England are overweight or obese and half of seven-year-olds are not getting the recommended 60 minutes of daily physical activity. Walking, scooting or cycling to school could play a key role in helping children get their recommended hour of physical activity a day and enable them to maintain a healthy weight.

Organised by Sustrans, and sponsored by Micro Scooters and Tonik Energy, the Big Pedal, which took place from 25 March to 5 April, is the largest inter-school cycling, walking and scooting competition of its kind in the UK.

For more information and a list of the overall winners visit https://bigpedal.org.uk/

The Giant Walking Bus, which took place on June 11^th, saw over 50,000 children across the UK march for road safety in an event designed to promote safe driving to parents and local communities. With a number of schools expected to carry out their Giant Walking Bus activity during Road Safety Week (17-23 November), the final number of participating children is expected to exceed 70,000.

Equipped with high-vis vests, posters, banners and the loud voices of thousands of children, schools across the nation took part in a 500m safe walk around the roads surrounding the school, creating an eye-catching giant human bus.

Participating schools were also encouraged to fundraise for Brake and as a result have raised a staggering £20,500, with more money expected to be donated following the events in November.

Once all the fundraising activity is complete, Brake estimate that total donation money will come in at almost £35,000, money which will maintain Brake’s lifesaving campaigns for safer roads and their vital work in supporting families bereaved and injured in road crashes.

Rich Evans, campaign spokesperson for road safety at webuyanycar.com comments:

“We take our responsibility as the UK’s biggest online car buying service very seriously and are dedicated to doing all we can to protect the most vulnerable road users. Raising funds and awareness go hand-in-hand and we are proud that our work enabled us to communicate a GO 20 message to local communities while enabling Brake’s vital work to continue.”

Katie Shephard, fundraising and engagement director of Brake, comments: “The Giant Walking Bus is one of the most fun pieces of activity we organise so it was great to partner with an organisation who shares our values and aims. We’re pleased with the results and the money will be well invested in helping to protect children on the roads.”