"If we'd had this law in the UK, Caitlin and her friend wouldn't have been killed"
That was the message from Sharron Huddleston who lost her daughter, Caitlin, in a road traffic collision in 2017.
Sharron is now a passionate campaigner for Graduated Driving Licences (GDLs), much like the ones in other countries, and keen to get the message out there and clear up some misconceptions including:
- GDLs do not last for 5 years, they would last for 6 - 12 months
- They don't restrict all passengers, they're aimed at peer-age passengers
- There could be exemptions in place to accommodate specific circumstances
Sharron also points out that any restrictions put in place would be trivial compared to the restrictions Caitlin now faces.
As a result of this tragedy, Sharron started Caitlin's Campaign which isn't just pushing for GDLs but also trying to get the message out to young drivers and the parents of young drivers about the dangers they face on the roads such as having passengers in the car and rural roads.
As driving instructors, this is where we can help.
We can have these conversations in car.
But we can also talk about this on our social media and share resources to parents.
No, not everyone will listen, but someone might.
You can contact Sharron at sharronhudd70@gmail.com
This week also saw the release of a series of bonus episodes that you can share with your learners.
I have taken clips for the episode around distracted driving to create a 15-minute-long podcast that has generated some great feedback.
Listen here.
This is perfect to share with your students and their parents.
Again, not everyone will listen, but we need to get past that mindset and think about the 1 person a year that might.
I'll be doing the same for this episode.
Stay safe,
Terry
Add comment
Comments