Brighten yourself up this winter

Sustrans Bike It officer Rachel Vann gives tips on how children can stay safe outdoors this winter.

With the lazy days of summer gone by and autumn firmly upon us, families across the UK are settled back into their school run routine. But, as the nights draw in and we prepare to descend into darkness when the clocks go back in the school half term (on Sunday 30 October), parents may become concerned about their children’s safety on the journey to and from school.

The evenings will become darker much earlier, which will be a worry for any parent. However, darker nights and bad weather shouldn’t prevent you from encouraging your children to walk or cycle to school.

UK charity Sustrans knows that half of all children in the UK want to cycle to school, however, just two per cent actually do. Cycling and walking to school and for everyday journeys is a really great way to incorporate daily exercise into your child’s routine – especially in winter when they probably won’t be playing outside as often. Seasonal weather is more of a hindrance for adults than children – most children will be happy to cycle come rain, shine, hail or even snow but at this time of year it’s really important that children understand the importance of ‘being bright and being seen.’

Rachel Vann, Sustrans Bike It officer in Birmingham gives some helpful tips on how to stay safe on darker evenings:

•    Always plan your route in advance - choose a direct, well-lit route

•    When cycling, ensure that children have the correct lights on their bike.

·         Encourage children to decorate their bike with fluorescent stickers and ‘spokie-dokies’ to help make them stand out

•    Encourage children to wear bright and reflective clothing. School uniforms are usually dark, so encourage children to wear hi-vis jackets and brightly coloured helmets and hats and other accessories

•    Use fluorescent back-pack covers on school bags. Alternatively, choose brightly coloured school bags or decorate dark bags with fluorescent stickers or bright material

•    It’s a great idea to put reflectors on your child’s bike – just make sure that they are pointing at the right angle, plenty of reflectors on bikes are loose or pointing the wrong way.

Sustrans currently works with over 750 schools across the UK to encourage children to choose two wheels for the school run. In the next few weeks Sustrans Bike It officers across the country will hold ‘be bright and be seen’ events at some of their schools to teach children the importance of wearing bright clothes on dark winter nights. Children will be encouraged to dress in the brightest clothes they can find for their journey to school.

Sustrans has launched the ‘Free Range Kids’ campaign which wants to create environments for independent, active children by tackling the speed and volume of traffic and creating public space that welcomes children. They are calling for area-wide 20mph speed limits in residential and built up areas and investment from government in safe routes to make walking and cycling the norm for local journeys, particularly the school run.

To support the campaign, find out how free range your kids are and find out information and advice on how kids can be more active everyday, go to www.sustrans.org.uk/freerangekids