News
25 JUNE 2008
NEW CHARTER AIMS TO CUT CHILD CASUALTIES
An initiative to reduce the number of child passenger casualties in Scotland is being launched today (25th June) at the Institute of Road Safety Officers (IRSO) conference
in Edinburgh.
The Good Egg Guide 'Parent's Charter' aims to build on the success of the existing 'In-Car Safety Campaign' by asking parents to sign up and follow the charter guidelines every time they take their children out in the car. It is intended to press home to parents and carers the dangers of poorly-fitted car seats and not putting seatbelts on children.
Over the past five years, more than 4,500 child seats have been checked by road safety officers across Scotland. In 2003 only a third (33%) were correctly fitted, but this has improved to nearly half (47%) in 2007.
Common faults included twisted or incorrectly routed seatbelts, seats that did not fit the car they were being used in or seatbelt buckles that bent over or rested on the child seat frame.
Mum of three-year-old Jack, Jane Saddler, who was the first parent to sign up, to the 'Parent's Charter' says: "I'd encourage all parents to visit the website - www.protectchild.co.uk - and sign up.
"Taking Jack out in the car is something I do without a second thought, so it's good to be reminded how important it is to take a few extra minutes to make sure he's belted up properly before I set off."
The campaign is supported by a consortium of public and private sector organisations including Road Safety Scotland, the Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland (ACPOS), the Arnold Clark Group and local road safety units.
Michael McDonnell, Director, Road Safety Scotland, says: "We've shown steady progress in the number of car seats found to be correctly fitted with a 42% improvement over the last five years - but we can do even better.
"Every day someone becomes a new parent, and we must help them understand that there is a real life-and-death difference for their children if they fit the wrong seat or fit the right seat incorrectly."
Jane Greer, Scottish Group Chair, IRSO, says: "With more than 100 child seats on the market which come in a variety of styles and designs for babies through to older children, parents can often feel overwhelmed by the choice available.
"Parents must make sure they buy the correct child seat for both the child and the car, and make sure that if they move it from car to car, the reinstallation is correct and secure."
To help parents and carers learn more about the issue and what they can do to keep their children safer, more than 60,000 copies of 'The Scottish Good Egg Guide to In-Car Child Safety' booklets are being sent out to GP surgeries, leisure centres, libraries and other public buildings to drive home the importance of correctly fitted seats and proper restraints for children.
An intensive two-week radio campaign will run on stations across Scotland, and a range of materials including posters, leaflets and height charts will be distributed via local road safety units to boost awareness of the initiative.
Sir Arnold Clark, Chief Executive of the Arnold Clark Group says: "As a father and a great grandfather, I am very conscious that children should be safe when they are travelling in a car, which is why I support the 'In-Car Child Safety' initiative.
"The aim of this campaign is simple; to increase in-car child safety and reduce the number of child casualties caused by collisions. It doesn't take much time to check a car seat is fitted properly but it's too late after a collision."
According to figures from the Scottish Government, on average almost two children are killed or injured in cars on Scotland's roads every day.
Information on child seats and advice on how to improve in-car safety can be found on the campaign website at www.protectchild.co.uk
ENDS
Media contact:
Denise Raven, Dynamic PR, on Tel: 0113 216 7587, Mobile: 07947 142514 or Email: denise.raven@dynamicadgroup.com
Notes to editors:
The Institute of Road Safety Officers (IRSO) conference is being held at Herriot Watt University, Edinburgh on 25th-28th June, 2008.
4,653 child car seat checks were carried out by road safety officers across Scotland between 2003 and 2007. 265 of 806 child seats checked in 2003 were correctly fitted compared to 304 of 648 child seats checked in 2007.
657 children were killed or injured in cars in 2006 - table 25 of Road Accidents Scotland 2006.
