Road safety education

Direction and guidance to support effective implementation of road safety education in NSW public schools Kindergarten to Year 12.

Audience

All staff, including principals, teachers and support staff.

Version Date Description of changes Approved by

V01.0.0

30/01/2025


Under the 2023 Policy and procedure review program, new policy document with consolidated instructions previously provided in the Road Safety Education, Driver Education and Training policy and guidelines.

Executive Director, Teaching Quality and Impact


About the policy

Road safety is taught in each stage of learning as part of the Personal Development, Health and Physical Education (PDHPE) Kindergarten to Year 10 syllabus and the mandatory Stage 6 Life Ready course.

Term Definition

A whole-school approach

Schools, parents, carers and communities work together to create a sustained safe and supportive environment for students to learn, understand, practise and apply road safety knowledge and skills.

Road users

Includes passengers, pedestrians, wheels users and future drivers in a variety of contexts and locations such as rural and remote, regional and metropolitan.

Wheels users

Riders of bicycles, including e-bikes, foot scooters and skateboards.

Driver education

Focuses on attitudes and behaviours of young people as road users (passengers and future drivers).

Learner driver training

Focuses on developing the skills for behind-the-wheel operation and control of a motor vehicle as a learner driver.

Principals:

  • ensure road safety is taught in each stage of learning as part of the Personal Development, Health and Physical Education (PDHPE) Kindergarten to Year 10 syllabus and the mandatory Stage 6 Life Ready course.
  • provide opportunities for staff to undertake the department’s road safety education professional learning
  • regularly communicate and consult with parents, carers and students about the road and traffic conditions near the school, such as changes and hazards
  • annually review the Location and transportExternal link page on their school's website to ensure current safe travel information is provided to the school community
  • provide information to parents and carers promoting safe travel
  • ensure teachers follow the Excursion and variations of routine procedures
  • review safe entry and exit procedures – contact Work Health and Safety Advisors for support and advice on risk assessments
  • take reasonable care to minimise the risk of foreseeable harm (physical and psychological) to others
  • refer to Work health and safety policy and advice for the Risk Management Procedure such as Vehicles on school grounds
  • report near misses and potential hazards to the Incident Report and Support Hotline 1800 811523
  • notify and liaise with relevant agencies, including local councils, NSW Police and Transport for NSWExternal link, as well as relevant department officers such as Work Health and Safety Advisors and local department Road Safety Education Officers about issues in the school zone.

Teachers:

  • follow the Excursions and variations of routine procedures and safe travel advice
  • explicitly teach road safety through the curriculum to meet student needs (pedestrian safety, passenger safety, safety on wheels and future driver education)
  • undertake the department’s road safety education professional learning
  • share student learning with parents and carers to ensure consistent road safety messaging and reinforce safe behaviours
  • supervise students’ safe entry and exit of school grounds, as required by the principal
  • report near misses, potential hazards and unsafe behaviours to the principal.

Students:

  • develop the knowledge and skills to progressively manage their own and others’ safety
  • follow the school’s procedures for safe entry and exit of school grounds
  • cooperate with staff and others such as school crossing supervisors and bus drivers to be a safe road user.

Parents and carers:

  • reinforce safe road use with their child/ren
  • model safe behaviours for children and young people in the road environment, including safe driving behaviours around schools.

What needs to be done

1. Provide road safety education

Schools should adopt a whole-school approach to effectively implement road safety education by considering the three areas outlined in this section.

1.1 Provide quality teaching through the curriculum

Schools should provide quality teaching of road safety to meet all students’ needs. Effective road safety teaching and learning is:

  • explicitly taught in each stage of learning, Kindergarten to Year 10
  • aligned with Personal Development, Health and Physical Education (PDHPE) Kindergarten to Year 10 syllabus and Stage 6 Life Ready course learning outcomes
  • localised, student-centred, skills-focused and engaging
  • developmentally appropriate
  • sequential and ongoing, not just a one-off event
  • strengths-based with educative purpose

For more information refer to best practice road safety education.

Principals must:

  • ensure road safety is taught in each stage of learning as part of the Personal Development, Health and Physical Education (PDHPE) Kindergarten to Year 10 syllabus and the mandatory Stage 6 Life Ready course
  • ensure teachers and staff understand the road safety needs of all students and develop age-appropriate teaching and learning activities for each stage
  • provide opportunities for staff to undertake the department’s road safety education professional learning.

Teachers must follow the Excursions and variations of routine procedures and safe travel advice.

Teachers should:

  • explicitly teach road safety through the curriculum to meet student needs (pedestrian safety, passenger safety, safety on wheels and future driver education) for each stage of learning
  • use quality road safety resources provided by the department and Transport for NSW
  • contact their local department Road Safety Education Officer for support
  • follow the guidelines for best practice road safety education
  • not use shock and fear tactics when teaching road safety and take a strength-based approach
  • undertake the department’s road safety education professional learning
  • consider students’ previous traumatic road experiences
  • use incidental learning opportunities, such as excursions to model and practice, road safety learning
  • use translated road safety information as needed to support students
  • differentiate the learning to cater for all students’ abilities, experiences and understandings about the road traffic environment.

1.2 Communicate with parents, carers and the community

Parents and carers are responsible for their child’s travel to and from school.

The department encourages students to walk or ride to school when the school and the parent or carer believe it is safe to do so.

It is important to share road safety information with parents and carers so they can reinforce safe behaviours when out and about with their children.

Principals should:

  • regularly communicate and consult with parents, carers and students about the road and traffic conditions near the school, such as changes and hazards
  • provide information to parents and carers promoting safe travel, via various communication channels such as social media, school websites, newsletters, enrolment information for new families and transition to school for kindergarten and high school.
  • annually review the Location and transportExternal link page on their school's website to ensure current safe travel information is provided to the school community
  • support newly arrived families and provide translated road safety information or interpreters to ensure road safety messages are clearly understood
  • engage and liaise with parents and carers about road safety concerns and safe practices through school P&C and road safety committees
  • collaborate and consult with parent and carer groups or volunteers to organise safe active travel and safe parking initiatives, if requested by the school community.

Teachers should:

  • share student learning with parents and carers to ensure consistent road safety messaging and reinforce safe behaviours
  • educate newly arrived students about road safety.

1.3 Manage road safety environment and culture

Schools should create and maintain a safe, supportive environment and culture onsite and in the school zone.

The department’s Health and Safety policies and procedures guide schools to manage road safety in the school grounds.

Principals should:

Teachers must:

  • supervise students’ safe entry and exit of school grounds, as required by the principal
  • report near misses and potential hazards, unsafe behaviours to the principal.

2. Consideration of learner driver training in high schools

Learning to drive is a key responsibility of parents and carers.

Teaching to drive is not part of the NSW PDHPE Years 7 to 10 syllabus or Stage 6 Life Ready course. It is not a requirement in NSW high schools.

This section is only for high schools that have identified a student and community need to support learner drivers in obtaining their driver’s licence.

Principals approve the implementation of a learner driver training program and must ensure these learner driver training implementation procedures are followed.

Learner driver training program implementation checklist (PDF 330 KB)to be downloaded

2.1 Ensure legal compliance

Schools that offer learner driver training must:

2.2 Meet conditions for driving instructors

Any person giving instruction must:

  • hold a current NSW Driving Instructor's Licence
  • meet all compliance requirements for the Working with Children Check as a volunteer
  • have the approval of the principal
  • be on a voluntary basis and attract no payment
  • deliver instruction on a one-to-one basis during learner driver training sessions
  • not directly market their services to students at the school
  • develop practical driving tasks as defined in the Learner Driver Log BookExternal link to meet the required 120 hours of on-road driving.

2.3 Plan and schedule the program

NSW high schools that offer a learner driver training program must:

  • consult with their Director, Educational Leadership
  • schedule it outside regular school hours
  • develop a consent form outlining
    • program and training provided
    • risk management procedures and safety of students
    • expectations of students and the driver trainer.
  • NOT offer Advanced driver training
  • consult with Legal Services directorate before any contract is entered into between the school and external provider
  • evaluate the program annually.

2.4 Ensure students meet all conditions

Students can participate in a learner driver training program under the following conditions:

  • it is free of any charge
  • participation is voluntary
  • written consent from parents and carers is specific to the activities and the arrangements for the training
  • a current NSW learner driver’s licence is held.

2.5 Comply with ownership and maintenance requirements

Schools that own motor vehicles for learner driver training must ensure:

Mandatory tools and templates

Supporting tools, resources and related information

Teaching and learning

Safe road use

Road safety culture

Driver training

Policy contact

The Executive Director, Curriculum monitors the implementation of this procedure, regularly reviews its contents to ensure relevance and accuracy, and updates it as needed.

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