Westbury firefighters join primary school in road safety awareness

Sixty students from Bitham Brook Primary School were joined by Westbury firefighters to take part in a  ‘Giant Walking Bus Day’ to raise awareness of road safety issues and in particular the Think 20 Campaign.

The event, held on Wednesday 11th June, was part of a national initiative by the road safety charity Brake which also aimed to  collect funds for Brake’s work to improve road safety and care for road crash victims.

Children from the reception class and year 3 were given a road safety talk and then wore high visibility jackets to walk with teachers and Westbury firefighters around the local area. The students held up placards that they had designed and made, calling for speeding cars to slow down.

Bitham Brook Primary School headteacher, David Ross said, “We want to give the children a sense of road safety as it is so important and it’s great that the school can work with the fire service. The firefighters are excellent role models and the children have been so enthused having them here.”

Westbury firefighter, Jess Horth said, “All the children have been really keen and we are happy to help raise awareness of the dangers of traffic.”

Jan Barber, youth advisor at Wiltshire Fire & Rescue Service talked to children in the reception class about road safety. She said, “So many children are killed on roads that we wanted to raise awareness of the issue.

“The younger we can start teaching road safety, the better. These children will also educate the rest of their families and make them safe.”

Ian Hopkins, road safety development manager at Wiltshire Fire & Rescue Service said, “Accidents on the road affect not just the individual, but also the lives of families can be destroyed by losing a loved one, or changed forever by having to care for a family member with life-changing injuries. By supporting this national awareness week, we will hopefully encourage people to think more carefully about their safety on the roads, whether that is as a pedestrian, cyclist or driver.”

More about Brake’s Giant Walking Bus initiative can be found at www.brake.org.uk/walkingbus