50% of children are at risk in their parents cars

Published Thursday 13 March 2014 at 15:36

Blackburn with Darwen’s (BwD) Road Safety Team, help the BBC with a new series ‘Watchdog Test House’ (Monday, March 17 at 11.45am).  The series looks into the testing process and the lengths manufacturers go to when testing household products and equipment.  In this particular episode they will look at child restraints, highlighting the importance of safe installation.

BwD Road Safety team has worked with Child Seat Safety Ltd (CSS) on community and enforcement check events on several occasions to target child in-car safety issues.  The results from this work are included in CSS’s latest research paper, which looks at the finding of nearly 2000 checks across the country in 2013; more information on the report can be found at www.childseatsafety.co.uk.

Claire Waterhouse Co-Director of CSS Ltd said “The results found in Blackburn correspond with those from other parts of the Country.  Parents are making mistakes that could be life threatening to their children, but which can be easily rectified when explained properly to the parent. Many parents spoken to, were mortified when they realised they weren’t given comprehensive information and advice that would have helped to ensure their child was safe, when purchasing the child restraint.”

Because of their previous joint working CSS approached BwD Road Safety Team and Eastern Division Road Policing Unit to assist with the filming of this programme for Watchdog.  The footage shows a Police Enforcement Check, this is one way of enabling restraints to be checked, ensuring child seats are fitted correctly and that the correct seat is used for the age and weight of the child.

BwD Road Safety Team has been recognised nationally for its innovative approaches to casualty reduction, delivering a comprehensive programme of education, training and publicity across the Borough, exceeding all the Government key targets on casualty reduction.

Councillor Maureen Bateson, Executive Member for Regeneration said “it is excellent to see the Road Safety team recognised for all its hard work in casualty reduction and it is hoped that parents in the Borough take on board the advice given to keep their children and themselves safe whilst travelling, and further reduce casualty figures and the severity of injuries that can be caused in a collision.”

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