Associate Feature: Improving Road Safety Outcomes for All

Road safety is an integral part of our lives.  Most of us use the roads network on a regular, if not daily basis. Walking our children to and from school.  Cycling to the shops.  Taking a bus to visit friends and family. Going on a drive in the car.  Unfortunately, we also know that our roads are not always the safest of places.

Road accidents represent one of the leading causes of accidental death to children and young people. It is, therefore, vitally important to ensure that we all have the necessary skills to use our roads network safely to minimise the risk of injury. 

The Road Safety Framework to 2030, sets out a compelling long term vision for road safety, ‘Vision Zero’, in which there are no fatalities and injuries on Scotland’s roads by 2050.

The key to achieving this vision will be collaboration.  Road Safety Scotland (RSS) has a responsibility for road safety education and we work with many partners across Scotland to ensure that road safety is seen as a lifelong skill. 

RSS have produced a suite of high-quality, free, online road safety learning resources.  All are linked to Curriculum for Excellence and are designed specifically to engage children in their road safety learning journey throughout their school years and beyond.

Road safety learning, while rooted in health and wellbeing, is rich, diverse and interdisciplinary in nature. To truly give children the skills they need to cope with our modern road network and contribute towards ‘Vision Zero’, road safety learning needs to go beyond the early years centre and school.  Road safety education is a responsibility of all.

The example we set as the road users of today, will greatly influence the type of road users our young people will become in the future.  So we all as professionals, teachers, practitioners, parents, carers need to be good role models and lead by example. 

If we all play our part individually, collectively we can proactively shape and better road safety outcomes for future generations.  ‘Vision Zero’ - let’s play our part!

Caroline Hay is education adviser at Road Safety Scotland

This article was sponsored by Road Safety Scotland