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Care Zone areas: Road Safety project

Care Zone areas: Road Safety project

Summary report

Four Primary Schools in the Care Zone area participated in the Road Safety project, funded by DfI 

  • Sacred Heart Boys PS
  • Integrated PS Cliftonville
  • Our Lady’s, Deanby Gardens
  • Bunscoil Bheann Mhadagain

 

You can read more about the findings of the travel survey here.

The following actions took place in preparation for the project:

Poster competition

  • Liaison took place with the Sacred Heart Principal re key messages to include on leaflet for poster competition
  • Liaison with the artist took place to develop school poster; school leaflet developed by artist with timescale and vouchers for winning poster/poem/video
  • The leaflet circulated to all four schools and was amended to suit extended timescale for one primary school
  • Posters were received from three primary schools, in poster, poems and videos format promoting messages on road safety
  • In total 28 winning posters from the three schools were awarded with a voucher
  • Messages on winning posters were produced in pvc style poster for school gate entry during Road Safety Week and on billboard in local area to promote children’s messages on road safety - methods agreed through engagement with schools and local Community Champions in the care Zone

 

Road Safety Week

  • Initial discussions were held with the Community Champions, (local parents group) Care Zone on how to manage Road Safety week with Covid restrictions in place
  • Agreed with Community Champions, Road Safety week provisionally will be week beginning 19TH April
  • Community Champions give permission for their child to walk to school with parent and artist to be videoed and used later as a resource on Road Safety resource
  • Guidance around Covid restrictions at schools to plan Road Safety week with drama/artist was provided

 

Wizard of Oz artists

  1. Requests were made to three theatre companies for the cost of co-designing characters’ participation in Road Safety week.
  2. Liaison took place with principals of the four primary schools to promote Wizard of Oz characters and Road Safety week.
  3. Play make believe theatre company was appointed and briefed on the role within Road Safety Week
  4. Engagement with YEHA staff and the Community Champions, BHC staff and the Care Zone Steering Group co-designed activities for Road Safety week.

     The following activities took place:

  • Wizard of Oz characters participated across the three schools, Mon; Wed and Friday mornings and afternoons and generated great excitement for the children and encouraged engagement and participation of children and parents;
  • Road safety information and promotional materials was requested and received from DfI;
  • A billboard poster was designed and amended following input from DfI and was placed on two billboard places for two weeks in the local area, one of the weeks was Road Safety week;
  • Road safety posters were designed based on children messages in the poster competition and promoted outside schools during road safety week;

 

Road Safety sessions

  • Road safety awareness sessions were conducted with each year group in two primary schools during Road Safety week by YEHA staff;
  • Information tables were available outside three primary schools each morning and afternoon during Road Safety week; Wizard of Oz characters participated in these mornings; YEHA provided road safety and promotional information at the tables; the active travel survey was conducted by Community Champions, YEHA and BHC staff.
  • Schools were invited to participate, on the final day of Road Safety week in a photo opportunity with Play Make believe theatre; the community Champions and staff involved in Road Safety week.
  • It was an excellent example of partnership working and innovation in engaging parents and children in road safety messages
  • received as to language and length of survey
  • Further amendments were made
  • The amended survey was forwarded to Community Champions and a zoom meeting was held to discuss questions and ways to conduct survey and to encourage completion of survey
  • The final survey forwarded to four schools for circulation to parents with an initial return date of 19th March.
  • A draw for vouchers being offered to submit survey

 

Community Champions, YEHA and BHC staff conducted the survey with parents during Road Safety week, 19th April, with Covid restrictions in place.     

In preparation the following took place:

  • Several briefings were held with the Care Zone Steering Group and the Community Champions re approach to conducting the active travel survey
  • Guidelines and materials on Covid were provided to all staff and personnel involved in the project
  • Schools were forwarded a message asking them to put on their Facebook pages/website a message to encourage parents to participate in completing the survey
  • A total of 179 survey responses were received
  • Further awards were provided for completion of face to face surveys
  • A report of the survey responses has been produced and an action plan will be developed to take forward the actions suggested.