Recent Events

Recent Events across Gwent Wide

Junior Road Safety Officer Conference

This years’ Junior Road Safety Officer Conference was held at the Newport International Sports Village, Wales National Velodrome, on Tuesday 23rd June. It was a fun, action packed and educational, with 16 schools participating on the day.

The event received a generous funding contribution from Capita Symonds; was supported by the Welsh Assembly Government and the participating five Local Authorities of Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council; Caerphilly County Borough Council; Monmouthshire County Council; Newport City Council and Torfaen County Borough Council.

During the morning session the Fire & Rescue Services, Heddlu Gwent Police, DHL’s heavy goods vehicle, and The Road Safety Team played their part. In the afternoon the Junior Road Safety Officers experimented with stationary bicycles, rowing machines and a ‘Beer Goggle’ obstacle course!

In the morning the children were given the opportunity to explore Maindee Station’s Fire Appliance and see their emergency cutting equipment, which can be used to extricate passengers from crashed cars. The Roads Policing Unit brought in two motorway police cars and gave some children the experience of being breathalysed! DHL provided a HGV which they use for their Trucks and Child Safety Programme (TACS). The children were advised about where large vehicle’s blind spots are, how big they are and to never cross the road in these spots. The Road Safety Team also held a cycling quiz, the JRSOs worked in teams to figure out what was wrong with two broken bikes. They were also given some useful information about looking after their own bikes and the importance of wearing their cycle helmets.

During the lunch break everyone had a special treat of watching the semi-professional cyclists using the specialised track, which was thoroughly enjoyed by all.

 The afternoon sessions were a lot more active. They visited an anti drink drive station, where they had to complete an obstacle course and other tricky tasks wearing ‘Beer Goggles’. The JRSOs also tried out two stationary bicycles and rowing machines, they were challenged to cycle or row as fast and as far as they could in a minute. Luckily for the teachers, they were excused and instead received presentations and a trouble shooting question time with representatives from the Schools Travel Plans, South East Wales Transport Alliance (SEWTA) and Kerbcraft programmes.

Anna Smith the Junior Road Safety Officer Coordinator said ‘I am privileged to be able to provide an informative and fun day for the Junior Road Safety Officers. They have worked hard all year improving Road Safety within their school and local community and deserve a great day out at a special location!’

The teachers commented that the day was ‘Fun and entertaining; the children learnt a lot, at ease, and any questions were informative and openly answered.’

Kyle Coles a pupil in Torfaen said ‘It was a really great day! I had the beer goggles on and could see two of everything!’

Thanks must be given to:
Capita Symonds, Cwmbran and the Road Safety Team;
DHL UK Foundation;
Heddlu Gwent Police, Roads Policing Unit, PC53 & PC644;
Monmouthshire’s School Travel Plan Coordinator,
South East Wales Transport Alliance (SEWTA), Regional Travel Plan Coordinators,
South Wales Fire & Rescue Services, Community Safety, Maindee Station;
Torfaen’s Pedestrian Training Coordinator;
Wales National Velodrome;
And all the Junior Road Safety Officers and teachers/ parents that escorted them to the conference.

The JRSO Conference coincided with the Child Accident Prevention Trust’s Child Safety Week, 22nd – 28th June 2009.

Being a Junior Road Safety Officer School is a responsible step to helping pupils become more aware of the dangers of the road and encouraging them to think about their own safety. For more information, please contact anna.smith@capita.co.uk or 01633 463 296.