Children help design road safety signs in Durham City

Pupils from St Oswald’s CE Primary School in Durham City took part in a workshop organised by Durham County Council, creating two new signs to encourage slower driving and increased awareness of pedestrians.

The project aims to raise awareness of a reduced speed limit that applies outside the school during drop-off and pick-up times.

Four pupils who took part in theworkshop along with school’s headteacher, Donna Wilson-Smith (Image: DCC)

Councillor Tim McGuinness, cabinet member for rural, farming and transport at Durham County Council, said:
“These workshops are a fantastic way to engage with schoolchildren and teach them about road safety.

“By combining their knowledge of road safety with their new illustration skills, pupils have created two fantastic murals that they can be proud of.

“The signs also help to encourage drivers to slow down and be mindful of pedestrians crossing the road.

“It’s a great example of the innovative work of our road safety team and we look forward to working with more pupils on other exciting projects across the county.”

The artwork for the signs was developed during a session led by illustrator and author Holly Sterling, who worked with pupils to create designs inspired by the area.

Ms Sterling then brought the children’s ideas together to form the final artwork featured on each sign.

The project forms part of a wider project which aims to help raise awareness about road safety amongst primary schoolchildren and also encourage drivers to observe the reduced speed limit outside schools.

For more information about road safety in County Durham, visit www.durham.gov.uk/roadsafety.