Child pedestrian training

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About this service

Wiltshire Council has developed a programme of walking to encourage children to have a healthier lifestyle. Wiltshire Council is committed to the Department for Transport’s Casualty Reduction targets, to reduce child pedestrian casualties, and has developed its own pedestrian Walk Safe programme. This programme is well established and has been running since 2004 in all Wiltshire Primary, Infant and Junior schools. In 2008 over 15000 Wiltshire children in key stages 1 and 2 participated in Walk Safe, it forms part of the healthy schools award.

Walk Safe

The aim is to further reduce child casualties in Wiltshire. It is available free through primary schools, (available in Key Stage 1 & 2). It is delivered in schools to help children acquire the necessary skills to become safer pedestrians.

Walk Safe involves Road Safety Education working in partnership with schools, parents and carers to enable children to become aware of pedestrian safety issues and to help them develop appropriate pedestrian behaviour and reinforce good practice.

We have worked with our colleagues in the Department for Children & Education and they are happy to endorse Walk Safe as part of the PSHE&C Curriculum and are pleased to include Walk Safe in the Healthy Schools programme.

The Wiltshire Walk Safe programme is available free, to all primary schools, (available in Key Stage 1 & 2).

Walk Safe Objectives

• To encourage and help children to develop the skills required to deal with the traffic environment as a pedestrian.
• To help children develop strategies to make decisions and assimilate the risks in on-road situations.
• To develop appropriate pedestrian behaviour and reinforce good practice in children.
• To further develop the awareness amongst tea\hers, parents careers of the issues appertaining to child safety and how they are able to deal with the traffic environment.

Wiltshire Walk Safe Programme for Key Stage 1

The programme is designed for use with children at Key Stage 1 and is offered to all Wiltshire Infant and Primary Schools. It involves the schools working in partnership with the Road Safety Unit and parents and carers to enable children to become aware of pedestrian safety issues and to help them become safer pedestrians.

The Key Stage 1 programme consists of:

• In car safety
• Traffic on the roads
• Walking on footways- holding hands with an adult
• Safer places to cross
• Stop, look and listen
• Crossing safely
• Be bright be seen
• Safer places to play

Practical Training Session in school using pelican crossing/ zebra crossing.

The practical training for Key Stage 1 consists of playground/ school hall sessions with small groups of children emphasising holding hands, stop, look and listen and crossing safely.

Wiltshire Walk Safe Programme for Key Stage 2

The programme is designed for use with children at Key Stage 2 and is offered to all Wiltshire Primary and Junior Schools. It involves the schools working in partnership with the Road Safety Education and parents and carers to enable children to become more aware of pedestrian safety issues and to help them become safer pedestrians.

The Key Stage 2 programme consists of:

• Traffic
• Assessing Risk
• Speed stopping distances speed limits
• Safe places to cross
• Green Cross Code
• Be bright be seen
• Risk taking/ personal responsibility
• Practical training session:
• Assessing risk and taking risks
• Judging speeds/distances
• Safe places to cross
• Using Green Cross Code
• Crossing safely between parked cars.

The practical session for Key Stage 2 children involves small groups of children being taken for a walk on roads, in close proximity to the school. They will be asked to assess the risks, judge distance/ speed and use these factors to help them find a safe place to cross the road, using the Green Cross code to cross safely. Children will be shown how to cross safely between parked cars. The practical training sessions can involve parental help, if the school so desires. This results in the indirect education of adult road users, which has the effect of reinforcing the road safety message to children.

Last updated: 29 March 2009