“Hero or villain? aims to help keep pupils safe on the road as they move towards becoming the next generation of drivers”

• “Hero or villain? – You decide” targeted at the next generation of drivers
• “The lamppost is your friend” designed to prevent drivers from picking up speeding fines in built-up areas
• The Emmerdale resource – a training/educational resource for professionals who work with young people

“Hero or villain? – You decide”
Designed in partnership with secondary-school teachers, “Hero or villain?” has at its core a presentation for pupils in their last year at school – all learner drivers, novice drivers, or planning-to-be drivers – on the theme of staying safe and secure when behind the wheel by respecting the speed limits. The presentation forms the basis of a number of spin-off activities that tie in with curriculum and “Asdan” achievements. Together, the activities form an educational programme of genuine and lasting benefit to pupils, culminating in a formal presentation ceremony. The effect is to provide much more than “talk and chalk”, but to guide the pupils themselves to create a meaningful and memorable event that, it is hoped, will help keep them safe on the roads as they move towards becoming the next generation of drivers.

The objectives of the programme are:

• To help educate an audience of new and future drivers about how to stay safe and secure by respecting the speed limits – and about the role of speed-control safety cameras in reducing deaths and injuries on the roads
• To do so in a way that is interactive and participative, so that it is more memorable and meaningful to the audience
• To provide opportunities for pupils to actively engage in the presentation/programme (before, during and after)
• To provide opportunities for pupils to gain academic qualifications or accreditations through engagement with the presentation/programme

“The lamppost initiative aims to help keep motorists on the right side of the law – and safer on the road as well”

Before the presentation, pupils participate with teachers in the planning and preparation of the event. They issue formal invitations to the speaker and to the audience, following up on invitations to ensure they are responded to. They liaise with the speaker to confirm times and dates, and to ensure the speaker’s needs are met, for example, lectern, backdrop and handouts on seats.

The speaker is “hosted” before and after the presentation, including, for example, a “meet and greet” on arrival, refreshments, visitor’s badge and escort/guide for the day.

Other opt-in activities include:

• Market research among the audience on their views relating to various speed and safety-camera issues
• Maintaining a photo diary of the event
• Write up an account of the event and what they learned from it – not just about respecting speed limits or safety cameras, but about themselves and their contribution
• Design a poster, leaflet or similar that “captures” the message of respecting the speed limits. Entries are made the subject of a small exhibition

Significantly, winning entries are incorporated into West Yorkshire Casualty Reduction Partnership’s advertising campaigns. In addition to any formal qualifications that these activities may bring to pupils, the Partnership provides certificates of achievement that are presented at a formal awards ceremony, where pupils also receive a rare and special “casualty countdown” badge.

“The lamppost is your friend”
This is a driver re-education programme conducted on radio, newspapers and the sides of buses designed to stop drivers getting speeding fines. About half of all fixed penalty speeding notices issued in West Yorkshire are for offences of driving at 36/37/38mph in a 30mph zone. This underlines the scale of the challenge faced in encouraging drivers to respect speed limits in urban areas. “A common complaint from people who have received a penalty notice is that there were no signs to show them they were in a 30mph limit,” says the partnership‘s head of communications Philip J Gwynne.

“The lamppost campaign reminds motorists of what it says in The Highway Code, that if you’re driving through a built-up area and there are no other speed limit signs, the presence of streetlights at the side of the road denotes a 30mph limit.”

He adds: “The burden is on the motorist, but by the time they’ve realised there are no repeater signs and that this means they’re in a 30mph area, they could unwittingly have already exceeded the limit. We’ve launched the ‘lamppost is your friend’ initiative to help keep motorists on the right side of the law – and safer on the road as well.”

The Emmerdale resource
West Yorkshire Casualty Reduction Partnership is contributing to a major educational resource and its supporting conference. The Emmerdale resource has been produced by a partnership including Yorkshire TV, West Yorkshire Police, Compact Education Business Services and West Yorkshire Casualty Reduction Partnership.

It uses a storyline from the Emmerdale TV series as the basis for a series of powerful lessons for young people. The story involves a group of young people who, after a night out, miss their last bus and decide to steal a car in order to get home. Driving at speed, at night, in rain, along unlit country lanes, they knock down and kill a pedestrian.

The story then follows the effects this incident has on the individuals and the group … demonstrates how “small” actions can have serious consequences and examines the social, legal and personal issues that ensue. A conference of those who work with and for the region’s young people is to be held at Wakefield Trinity RUFC on June 23, when the Emmerdale resource will be demonstrated, discussed and made freely available. Break-out workshops will be held to enable delegates to draw up action plans for how they can best utilise the resource. Copies of the resource will then be made available free of charge to delegates.

“Educational and community outreach initiatives are the main thrust of our communications’ strategy in 2004-5,” says Philip J Gwynne.

For more information on any of these initiatives contact:
Philip J Gwynne
Tel: (01274) 437420
Mobile: 0788 078 5159
Fax: 01274 433733
E-mail: Philip.gwynne@bradford.gov.uk