A NEW initiative to cut the number of deaths on North Yorkshire’s Roads has been unveiled.

Road safety experts from North Yorkshire County Council’s Road Safety Team have devised WalkWise to help parents and carers teach road safety lessons to pre-school children.

 The programme will be available to playgroups and nursery schools as well as individual parents of three-year-old children living in the Selby, Scarborough and Harrogate areas.
 County councillor Don Mackenzie, executive member for road safety at the council said that more than 170 children were hurt on the county’s roads last year with 27 of those left seriously injured, an increase on the previous year.

He said: “It is essential that we do all we can to get that number down.”

WalkWise, which has been supported by Public Health, Highways and North Yorkshire Police through the 95 Alive Partnership, will have its own website as well as various learning-through-play resources including storybooks.

North Yorkshire Police and Crime Commissioner Julie Mulligan said: “As a parent myself I know how much I want to do the right thing for my children and having those lessons supported by their pre-school group and by our wider society as well is really reassuring and positive.

“I would encourage all those involved with pre-school children to take advantage of this excellent programme.”

For more information visit the website Walkwise