Thousands of Year 9 pupils across Lancashire have taken part in an interactive road‑safety theatre programme designed to help them make safer choices as young passengers.
Lancashire County Council’s Road Safety Team commissioned Performance in Education to deliver its YOLO (You Only Live Once) programme to around 8,000 pupils across 49 schools over a five‑week period.
Using the power of live theatre, YOLO delivers vital road safety messages in a way that resonates with young people. The performance and follow‑up workshop allow students to explore risk, responsibility, and real‑life consequences as passengers in a vehicle.
The programme reinforces the importance of wearing a seatbelt and provides practical strategies to help pupils manage risk and resist peer pressure.
The aim is to equip young people with the knowledge and confidence to make informed decisions, understand their personal safety, and recognise how their behaviour can influence the safety of others.
Feedback from the programme has been overwhelmingly positive. Of the more than 1,400 students who completed the evaluation:
- 98% said they enjoyed the presentation (with 89% rating it “all” or “a lot”).
- 97% said it made them think about the effects of risk‑taking behaviour on the roads.
Teachers also praised the programme, commenting that its messages “really landed home” and effectively challenged the idea of being “just a passenger.”
Many pupils highlighted that their key takeaway was the importance of wearing a seatbelt, and that they now recognise the role they play in supporting the driver and contributing to a safer journey.
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