Wednesday 25 February 2015

Encouraging teens to make safe choices

Interactive learning, drama and a game show-style presentation called “Hot Seat” are being used to get the “making safe choices when driving” message over to secondary school students.

Performed by graduates from the National Academy of Singing and Dramatic Art (NASDA), “Hot Seat” is delivered by Crash Bash – an educational road safety programme for secondary school students organised by Christchurch City Council and supported by Canterbury Police. It uses a contemporary stage performance to raise awareness among students about the importance of making safe choices for themselves and others when driving or as a passenger.

Transport and City Streets Unit Manager Richard Topham says being behind a wheel of a car or even travelling as a passenger is a responsibility that all drivers need to be reminded about.

“Driving is such an important task requiring focus and good decision-making. Our young people are especially vulnerable: small choices on seat belts, speed and cellphone use, when combined with peer distraction, can snowball into lethal consequences. We need our young people to be safe on our roads so helping them develop good habits is important.”

Canterbury Police’s Senior Sergeant Dean Harker, OC Specialist Squads on Road Policing, says “Canterbury Police are raising awareness of the five common causes of road crash related injuries in an attempt to reduce serious injury and fatalities on Canterbury Roads. The Crash Bash initiative allows Police to work in partnership with their Safer Journeys partners to get the message out to around 12,000 students in the wider Canterbury District.”

The Crash Bash school tour starts today on Wednesday 25 February and will run until Wednesday 1 April 2015. During that time 37 performances will be delivered in more than 25 secondary schools in Christchurch and the surrounding areas to about 12,000 students.

Schools and parents can obtain information about this year’s Crash Bash programme by visiting www.crashbash.co.nz

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