The Engage North West Programme has received a Prince Michael International Road Safety Award for its role in helping learner drivers to develop coping strategies for a number of key factors associated with the crash involvement of young drivers.
Originally developed by Ian Edwards from eDrivingSolutions in partnership with the South Yorkshire Safer Roads Partnership, Engage is now running (under different names) in South Yorkshire, Merseyside, Cheshire, South East, Lewisham, West Sussex, Clackmannanshire, Northants and Somerset. It is also in the process of being rolled out in several other areas across the UK.
The Engage programme aims to deliver a high standard of driving tuition to learner drivers, through their driving instructors.
Through the scheme, a learner driver will receive approximately two hours of targeted road safety tuition on issues including peer pressure, fatigue, distraction, seatbelts, alcohol and drugs. The programme places an expectation on, and supports, parents and guardians of learners to involve themselves in the process.
The instructor uses coaching techniques to better prepare novice drivers for post-test solo driving. These skills are critical in the development of a learner’s ability to maximise their own problem solving abilities.
All modules are linked to an e-learning management system which allows the instructor to monitor the learner’s progress.
In the North West more than 200 driving instructors have received specialist training to deliver learner-centred coaching to better equip learner drivers with skills to identify and deal with hazards on the roads.
The Prince Michael Award was presented on 26 November at the 2014 National Road Safety Conference in Brighton.
Comment on this story