Image: Durham County Council via Twitter
Pupils from two secondary schools in County Durham have been selected to develop films to promote road safety in the region.
Year 7 pupils (aged 11-12 years) from Seaham High School and Park View School, Chester-le-Street, put forward their proposals during a Dragon’s Den-style event, organised as part of Durham County Council’s ‘Slow to 20 for Safer Streets’ campaign.
The winning group from each school will now work with members of the Riot Act Theatre Group to develop a script and record their film, with the final productions to be shown at the council’s Junior Road Safety Officers’ end of term event later this month.
The children were given the chance to pitch a film concept after watching a road safety drama performance from Riot Act. The hour-long performance explained the aims of the Slow to 20 initiative and covered a number of other topics including distractions, peer pressure, failure to look, safer crossing points and active travel choices.
Paul Watson, Durham County Council’s road safety manager, said: “It’s essential that we make motorists aware of the 20mph zones but it’s equally as important that we educate our children about road safety.
"The drama performances and chance to pitch film ideas are a great way of engaging with young people and passing these important messages on.”
Reduced speed limits and 20mph zones have been introduced on roads around 66 County Durham schools since the launch of Slow to 20 in 2014.
The project is accompanied by an education programme which aims to make children more road aware, promote cycling and walking, and increase speed awareness among motorists.
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