Barnet Council has successfully piloted a series of free parent and child independent travel road safety workshops following strong demand from local families.
Prior to developing the programme, a survey was distributed through local schools to gauge interest in family-based road safety education and help shape the format and content of the workshops. Parents were asked about the topics they would like covered, their preferred workshop length and the most convenient times for sessions to take place.
The survey received 76 responses, with 92% of parents expressing an interest in attending and a further 7% indicating they may be interested. The findings demonstrated strong demand for the initiative and were used to inform the design of the pilot programme.
Delivered during the summer holidays, workshops were aimed at children who are new independent travellers or who will soon begin travelling independently during the 2026-27 academic year. By involving both parents and children, the sessions encouraged shared learning and provided families with practical strategies to help children travel safely and confidently.
Three two-hour workshops were delivered, with each family attending a single session. In total, 26 parents and carers and 31 children took part.
During the interactive workshops, participants explored a range of topics designed to improve children’s understanding of road risk and safe decision-making. Activities included watching short video clips, an adult versus child road safety quiz, and a mobile phone distraction challenge demonstrating how easily attention can be diverted near roads.
Topics covered included:
- The Green Cross Code and safer crossing behaviours
- Visibility and the importance of being seen by other road users
- Child development and hazard perception
- Managing peer influence near roads
- Understanding driver limitations and behaviour
- Safety on public transport
- Stranger Danger
Each child received a high-visibility reflective drawstring bag containing road safety resources, including hi viz bag clips and activity booklets to help reinforce key learning messages after the workshop.
One parent commented:
“The course was brilliant and expertly presented and we put some of it into practice. I wish everyone would go on this course as there is much we can learn from it.”
Another said:
“Real life scenarios and lots of useful information that I didn’t know delivered in an engaging way.”
A third participant added:
“Lots of references and memories to go back to in a purposeful manner.”
The council is now reviewing feedback from the pilot programme to help inform future road safety education initiatives for families across the borough. Following the positive response from families, Barnet Council plans to offer the parent and child independent travel road safety workshops again during summer 2027.
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