THINK! publishes back to school safe travel tips

THINK! has published a series of tips for teachers and road safety educators to share with pupils and parents for the back-to-school journeys.

Last week saw the return for all children to schools in England. 

THINK! says with longer days and warmer weather on the way – and with young people having enjoyed walking and cycling to keep active in lockdown – now is ‘a great time to continue the daily exercise on journeys to and from school’.

It is encouraging those who live a short distance from their school to consider walking or cycling – and has provided the following safety tips:

• Where there is a pavement or footway, use it
• When there is no pavement, walk on the right-hand side of the road to face the traffic coming towards you
• Walk one behind the other at bends in the road, or if there is a lot of traffic
• Take care when crossing cycle lanes on the road. Cyclists may be travelling quietly but can be faster than other traffic
• In bus lanes, buses may go faster than other traffic and sometimes they go in the opposite direction to the other traffic. Cyclists, motorcyclists and taxis may also be using the bus lane so take special care when crossing them
• Always wear a helmet when cycling 
• When cycling, do not ride in the space between the vehicle and the kerb, because they may be going to turn left, and you could be hurt 

The THINK! website contains a range of free, interactive, and fun road safety resources for children between the ages of 3-16 years.

These resources include:

• Hazard Spotting – interactive game
• Be Bright Be Seen – interactive game
• Take the Lead – interactive game
• Short films for children to watch including the interactive Safer Journeys Anthem

For teachers and educators, the website also contains lesson plans which can be adapted and used for online lessons.

All resources are divided into age categories, making it easier to locate the appropriate resource required. There is a section of related resources, to help with locating additional lessons, games or films which can assist with teaching and learning.

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