The Safe and Active Schools Programme has been developed to promote and support road safety and active travel activities in schools across Warwickshire. It is designed to help schools encourage active travel journeys whether that be for the whole journey by walking, cycling or scooting or for part of the journey using park and stride modes.
The Safe and Active School Award Programme aims to:
- Promote Safe and Active travel to and from school and beyond
- Reduce the number of vehicles idling and parking outside schools
- Use Safe and Active school activities to link with the curriculum and other programmes already running in school
- Work together with the wider community to make a difference and keep children safe
A free Programme for all schools
The most exciting part of this programme is that it is free! The Warwickshire Road Safety Education Team are committed to helping schools become Safe and Active and so we are offering this award and our support and guidance for free.
How do schools achieve a Safe and Active School Award?
The Safe and Active Travel award comprises of 4 levels: Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum, which schools work towards completing a combination of active travel activities.
Achieving one of the awards could not be easier with a pre-set list of activities provided.. Schools use our suggested Safe and Active intervention activities and Action Plan template to organise, plan and deliver the activities at each level. Once schools have completed the set number of activities, they send a completed form and evidence back to us for verification and reward. Schools can choose which award to aim for and have the whole academic year to complete it.
The School Champion
As part of the programme, schools will recruit a School Champion. A school champion can be any adult in school – a teacher, teaching assistant, a volunteer, a parent, a governor, a member of the PTA or any other adult member of staff.
The role of the School Champion is to be the main lead and point of contact for Headteachers, Governors, staff, the Road Safety Education Team and other professionals. They will be skilled in organising and motivating both children and adults and are enthusiastic in encouraging others to help make a difference.
School Champions will tailor the Safe and Active Travel Award to the needs of the school, choosing activities that will be delivered in school addressing issues such as congestion around the school gates; increasing active travel or reinforcing the Warwickshire Road Safety Code.
School Champions receive support, guidance and resources from the Road Safety Education team and are assigned a dedicated Road Safety Officer.
Rewards and benefits
- For taking part in the award schools receive free resources to help them complete the activities
- Eligibility for free cycle and scooter storage
- Free Bikeability training
- Free security bike markings
- Free Performance in Education productions
- Free high viz resources
- Support and guidance from our dedicated Travel Plan Officers to help write, review and update School Travel Plans
Mini Champions
Mini Champions is an incentive-based scheme developed to encourage children and their parents to use sustainable travel modes for the school journey. The Mini Champions scheme can be run as part of the Safe and Active Travel Award, as one of the pre-set activities, or as a standalone award.
The aim is to reduce the number of car trips made to and from school, ease pollution; encourage walking; promote healthier lifestyles for pupils and their families and reduce our carbon footprint on the world
Children will be issued with a record of achievement card which is stamped/coloured in each time they make a sustainable journey to and from school. When 25 journeys are made, children are issued with a certificate and a passport; the passport will be stamped every 25 journeys made.
To find out more about the Safe and Active Travel Award Programme or the Mini champions award, then contact the road safety education team by email at roadsafetyeducation@warwickshire.gov.uk.