Staff at Sawyers Transport Ltd visit St Francis Primary School

They ran a poster competition when the staff from the local firm visited the school and even allowed the children to sit in the cab of the lorry.

The visit was to mark Brakes Road Safety Week which took place from November 21 to 27. It is part of a nationwide event involving thousands of schools, organisations and community groups.

The event was set up in 1997, and coordinated annually by Brake each November. It aims to encourage grassroots action on road safety and raise awareness about the part we can all play in preventing tragedies and making roads safer.

Staff at Sawyers Transport Ltd gave a short presentation on the sort of road safety issues which the company are trying to promote.

They looked at what challenges the HGV driver face and what the children can do to keep themselves safe.

The children were then shown the blind spots a HGV driver contends with on a daily basis and children were given the opportunity to sit in the lorry.

Teachers also volunteered and the exercise illustrated the lack of visibility in a way that was both practical and informative.

The children then took part in a competition to design the best road safety poster for the drivers. All posters will be displayed by the team at Sawyers Transport Ltd to promote these important messages.

The event was so successful that the cab drivers have been invited back to speak to other children in the school in the New Year and have further plans to impart the same message to some cycling clubs locally in an attempt to carry on the road safety message.