Pupils from Great Dunmow Primary School have received a donation of high-vis kit bags to help them be seen walking to and from school.
Chelmsford-based housebuilder Barratt and David Wilson Homes donated the kit bags for Road Safety Week, which ran from November 14 to 20.
The theme for this year's Road Safety Week campaign is 'Safe Roads For All', which highlights that every life on the road matters, and every death or injury is preventable.
Great Dunmow Primary School headteacher Kevin Watts said: "There is a lot of new housing being built in the Great Dunmow area and we are really grateful to Barratt and David Wilson Homes for their initiative to work with us to ensure that pupils are safe and seen when walking around Great Dunmow."
According to figures from the 2021 National Travel Survey (NTS) and 2020-2021 Active Lives Survey (ALS), the number of children walking or cycling to school is falling.
In 2021, 46 per cent of children aged between five and 16 walked or cycled to school, a decrease from 50 per cent in 2020.
The Governments' Cycling and Walking Investment Strategy features a target to increase the percentage of children who walk to school to 55 per cent in 2025.
Barratt and David Wilson Homes' developments at Great Dunmow Grange are close to the primary school, and the homebuilders donated the high-vis kits as part of their aim to help the local community.
Tom Wright, managing director at Barratt and David Wilson Homes Eastern Counties, said: "We want to ensure the pupils in the local communities remain visible now the darker nights are here, and our donation will hopefully still encourage them to walk to school safely during Road Safety Week.
"This is a campaign we actively support each year as we endeavour to help local school children in their efforts to commute on foot, and the kit bags have proven to be both effective and practical."
Road Safety Week aims to inspire thousands of schools, organisations and communities to take action on road safety and promote life-saving messages during the week and beyond.
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