Agenda item

The ACFO handed over to the Prevention Support Officer who presented an update on activities undertaken in 2025-26. It was noted that the Road Thematic Road Safety Group continued to meet every quarter and there were strong links with CFA Member and Road Safety Champion.

Updates were given on the following initiatives:

·         Lancashire Road Safety Partnership (LRSP) – LFRS continued to work with partners on the strategy ‘Ambition for Vision Zero’ to reduce those killed or seriously injured on the roads. LFRS had a particular role in the delivery of education.

·         Road Safety Core Prevention Offer – included the Road Sense road safety education programme delivered to Year 6 pupils. The focus was on five key road safety themes selected to reflect Lancashire’s issues with young people: In Car Safety, Pedestrian Safety, Cycle Safety, Be Safe Be Seen, Bus Safety, E-bikes & E-scooters. Positive feedback had been received from schools. Due to the increasing issues with E-bikes and E-scooters, the CFA Road Safety Champion agreed to an additional A5 fun activity sheet being printed to hand out at the end of the session which highlighted the law around these vehicles and fire safety considerations. During the current reporting period, 19,759 Year 6 pupils were recorded as receiving this input, with 593 sessions being delivered, the highest delivery since the package was developed.

·         ‘Wasted Lives’ Young Driver Road Safety Education Programme – LFRS was now the only delivery partner for Wasted Lives on behalf of LRSP. The programme was aimed at young and pre-drivers and aimed to influence behaviour and change attitudes. For the period 2025-2026, LFRS recorded delivery of the programme to 11,081 young people over 97 sessions. Whilst the focus was primarily on delivering in high schools, there had been an increase in the number of requests for delivery to apprentice groups and colleges following the removal of ‘Safe Drive Stay Alive’ intervention through LRSP. A Christmas Road Safety Campaign was also organised in conjunction with the military at Halton Barracks focused on Lancashire’s Fatal 5 (Speeding, Drugs, Alcohol, Mobile Phones and Seatbelts). Over 90 soldiers attended a well-received half-day session. Statistically, the military lose more soldiers to RTCs than in war zones. Further engagement work had taken place through the delivery of Wasted Lives sessions to both Police and Air Cadet groups, covering pre-drivers and new drivers who might not be in mainstream schools. A project to deliver an adapted Wasted Lives session to Young Farmers groups, including the Crashed Car, continued following its launch in December.

·         ‘The Crashed Car’ – a complement to the ‘Wasted Lives’ provision which used a vehicle from a real incident where a fatality had occurred. During the 12-month reporting period, crashed car use had increased at Mosques during Friday Prayers and work had been undertaken in the Central, Eastern and Pennine areas, alongside the Imams to deliver key messages prior to prayers. This kind of engagement continued to improve, with Lancashire Council of Mosques working alongside the Service to reinforce the importance of key messages. This was highlighted at the first Road Safety Summit held in Pendle, which was broadcast on the radio to thousands of listeners nationwide. The event included a clear call to action for influential members of the community to come together and drive positive behaviour change.

·         Biker Down – a free 3-hour course offered to members of the public, with three modules covered: Incident Management, First Aid and The Science of Being Seen. LFRS worked with LRSP to ensure delivery was complementary to Bike Safe, a Police-led initiative. During this reporting period 165 motorcyclists were killed or seriously injured. Lancashire’s statistics showed riders were 72 times more likely to die on a motorcycle than in a car on our roads, which was higher than the national average of 60. There were 384 attendees at 18 Biker Down sessions in the last 12-months and appetite for the courses continued to grow. The pre and post questionnaire continued to show very positive behaviour change. This year, Biker Down was able to purchase First Aid Kits through the CFA Road Safety Champion budget. Over the last 12-months, the team had developed links with a motorbike franchise which supported delivery for six months and new links had since been made with another franchise based in Blackpool.

·         Alive to Drive Events – over the last 12-months, five of the main Road Safety Summer Events have taken place across the county: in Leyland, Preston, Blackpool, Morecambe and Blackburn.  Over the years, the event had grown significantly with support from many partners. The initial aim had been to encourage people to sign up to the Institute of Advanced Motorist/ Motorcyclist courses, and whilst this was still a key focus, the event had expanded to ensure there is relevant information for all ages and types of road users. The pinnacle of the event was the RTC demonstration. This was a multi-agency demonstration between LFRS, NWAS and Lancashire Constabulary which allowed members of the public to see what happens inside a road closure during an incident. The events also provided the opportunity to interweave key safety messages around Lancashire’s Fatal 5 and the factors which contribute most to serious and fatal road traffic collisions. This year’s events also featured a display of illegal E-bikes/ E-scooters to highlight the dangers they pose, explained which vehicles were road legal, and outlined the implications of being prosecuted for using illegal vehicles. This complemented Lancashire Constabulary Operation Centurion, which had a primary focus on anti-social driving. Alarmingly, these illegal vehicles were involved in six fatalities and 200 injuries last year on Lancashire’s roads. A partnership was also established with Global Ardour, who now sponsored the events and provided a scrap car for the RTC demonstration free of charge.

·         Road Safety Week 2025 – this was very?successful and busy, with extensive activity?delivered through a multi-agency approach. It included the delivery of Wasted Lives sessions in colleges, high schools, and for targeted groups of apprentices.?There was an increase in road safety activity across each area, with very targeted education taking place. Each area was tasked with delivering two Wasted Lives sessions to at risk groups (Year 10 or 11 in high schools or apprentice groups), many areas did more than asked.?During this reporting period, the LFRS Biker Down team also represented the programme at the NEC National Motorcycle Show. Over the course of the show, an estimated 80,000 people attended. Social media posts reached nearly 60,000 people, with over 2,000 engagements, allowing messages to be shared while also highlighting the key road safety campaign work delivered. In addition, through a partnership with EG Garages, an animated Fatal 5 clip was played on forecourts across the UK. The same clip was also shown on the big screens at all Blackburn Rovers matches at half time, following a road safety awareness event in the run-up to Christmas which included an RTC demonstration.

In summary, the last 12-month period was a very positive period for road safety education and engagement. Road safety education has been delivered to around 34,000 people in schools, colleges, workplaces and at events.  The Service continued to be an active member of the LRSP.

In terms of priorities for 2025-26, there were plans for further development of engagement at primary and secondary school and higher education level and with groups outside these settings, including the Child and Youth Justice Service, to deliver bespoke Wasted Lives sessions. Evaluation of all initiatives and campaigns was ongoing to ensure these were targeted appropriately, influenced positive behaviour change and presented value for money. Each road death costed society £2.3 million but more importantly, behind each death was a bereaved family whose lives were changed forever. Service staff were well placed to educate local communities and reinforce that road safety was everyone’s responsibility.

The Chair thanked the Prevention Support Officer for the comprehensive report. 

County Councillor G Mirfin confirmed that County Councillor J Ash had now replaced County Councillor J Fox as Road Safety Champion.

Resolved: - That the Committee noted and endorsed the report.