It is a frightening fact that more than 1,100 children aged between one and five were killed or injured as pedestrians on Britain's roads during 2006. There is no reason to believe that the statistics for later years will be any more reassuring.
Young children have difficulty judging speed and making reasoned decisions about their safety. It is generally agreed that a child should not be expected to cross the road alone until around the age of eight. But it is never too soon to start teaching children the importance of road safety, and there are many ways that we can introduce early awareness of the potential dangers and how best to avoid them.
What can we do?
Psychological studies have shown that most life-long habits have set in by the time a child reaches the age of five. Establishing safety awareness and implementing good practice, therefore, has the best chance of long-term success if introduced at this age.
Here are a few simple steps that you can take to get the message across effectively.
- Always set a good example, especially when on outings.
- Involve the parents and make sure that there is a consistent approach between nursery and home.
- Keeping a child indoors or strapped into a buggy may seem the safest option, but walking, being free to explore their environment, and developing independence should be encouraged, within safe boundaries.
- Ask your local council what help is available locally. Many will give talks to parents and/or children, or lend out useful resource boxes containing dressing-up clothes, toy vehicles, road playmats and lesson plans.
- Use outside play space to provide road-crossing practice, using ride-on vehicles, road signs, zebra crossings and toy traffic lights.
- Introduce road safety messages through board and card games, stories, toy cars, and playmats marked out as roads.
- Organise a 'Beep Beep!' Day where children can 'drive' around a marked route, make a giant road safety poster using handprints, and enjoy a range of fun safety-related activities (see the Brake website below).
Simple rules to remember
- Hold hands: The child should always hold an adult's hand or wear reins or a wrist strap when walking near the road. Expecting the child to hold on to a buggy is not enough, as they could let go at any time. It only takes a moment for an accident to happen, particularly if an adult briefly loses concentration or control.
- The child should walk to the side of the adult furthest from the road.
- Be bright, be seen: The child should always wear bright or reflective clothing, especially at night or in poor light, so that drivers can see them.
- Stop, look and listen. Practise the Green Cross Code at the pavement's edge, looking right, left and right again and listening for approaching traffic before crossing, and continue looking and listening as you cross.
- Choose a safe place to cross: a zebra or pelican crossing, or school crossing patrol. Never try to cross between parked cars, or near corners, hills or bends.
- Walk, don't run. Always walk straight across the road without stopping.
- Use the pavement: don't walk in the road, unless there is no pavement, when you should walk on the right, facing traffic coming towards you.
- When travelling in a car, always use a child safety seat, correctly fitted and suitable for the age and height of the child.
USEFUL RESOURCES
- The Teddy Takes a Tumble storysack (www.storysack.com, £46) includes a storybook by Neil Griffiths, toy car seat, teddy and cat, scenery and CD, so children can act out the road safety story
- Carpet road playmat (Early Learning Centre, £25). A sturdy rug marked with buildings, roads, roundabouts, car parking, junctions and crossings
- 'Let's Learn Traffic Signs with Rupert Bear' (Tactic Games UK, £4). Help children to recognise the most important road signs with this simple matching game.
- Traffic signs (Playmobil, £5). Set of small plastic road signs.
Recommended websites
- Department of Transport, www.direct.gov.uk/talesoftheroad (Some games may be unsuitable for young children)
- Brake road safety charity, www.brake.org.uk
- Traffic Club, www.trafficclub.co.uk, aimed at three- and four-year-olds.
