Here are some alarming statistics to contemplate before we get into the blog:
🚨- 9 children are harmed on UK roads every day.
🚨- 3,402 children aged seven and under were killed or injured in 2022.
🚨- 1,190 children are injured each month within 500 metres of their school.
In January and February alone, Medical Tracker has seen over 50 individual incidents of children requiring medical attention following an incident involving roads near schools.
Children are being physically hit by passing cars, cars are driving over their feet, and cyclists collide with children as they cross the road.
While strategies to realistically improve road safety around our schools lie with local and central government, how can schools respond to such alarming figures?
Alarm bells have recently been raised and resurfaced by Wera Hobhouse, Liberal Democrat MP for Bath. As a local MP, Wera has drawn attention to the broader conversation about road safety near our schools. For instance:
- Car dependency? If fewer cars are on the road, the likelihood of incidents is also reduced. This is easier said than done.
Many young people, particularly in Bath, are forced to rely on cars due to inadequate alternatives. For instance, robust bus timetables are needed to get children where they need to be and when they need to be there.
- Could cycling be the answer? According to Wera, there is work to be done here, too; why? Wera claims young constituents in Bath do not get adequate training and guidance for cycling,” she noted. Wera has called for more funding to increase the adoption of cycling proficiency schemes.
Well, we're thinking about this statistic:
🚨1,190 children are injured each month within 500 metres of their school.
This is an alarming statistic, but there is an additional thought for the school staff having to provide care for the children involved or recording these incidents.
The fatal threats posed by road traffic accidents mean swift care must be taken to avoid the critical impacts of those accidents.
For instance, if school staff must quickly provide emergency responders with critical information about students involved in an accident, how can they do so with a disparate paper-based system?
While there is limited data on the exact number of schools that still use paper for their first-aid tracking and monitoring, we know from the number of schools looking to implement Medical Tracker that this number is very high.
With 1,190 children injured each month near schools every month, that 1,190 instances of school healthcare staff managing the incident report internally, tracking follow-up care and potentially needing to communicate with parents.
A paper-based system is simply not up to scratch.
Medical Tracker supports 3,000 UK schools with a digital accident book for swift, efficient, compliant tracking and monitoring of first-aid incidents. Our platform also ensures:
👏🏻 School staff are appropriately equipped with functionality and features to access health records quickly and securely.
👏🏻 Communicate with parents and relevant school staff about specific children.
👏🏻 Accident investigations are carried out and updated in one place, and witness statements can be added for full audit trails.
If you are a school or trust that still relies on paper and laborious filing systems for your first-aid and healthcare, we encourage you to explore a new, safer, and more secure alternative.