UPDATED - NOVEMBER 2025
Every November, communities across the UK come together for Brake’s flagship awareness campaign – Road Safety Week. In 2025, it runs from 16th to 22nd November, giving all those who work in early years a golden opportunity to incorporate vital safety messages into their daily routines. The theme for this year is “Helping every child take their first steps towards a lifetime of safe travel”.
For those of us working with very young children, this can feel like a daunting task. How do you teach a three-year-old about traffic dangers without frightening them? The good news is you don’t have to approach it with warnings alone – Brake’s “Beep Beep!” Day offers an age-appropriate, playful way to introduce these concepts. Designed for children aged 2 - 7, it uses simple visuals, fun activities, and familiar characters to make learning about road safety both memorable and enjoyable.
Why Road Safety Matters in the Early Years
Anyone who has spent time with toddlers knows they’re curious, fast-moving, and wonderfully impulsive. But those same qualities mean they cannot judge speed or distance accurately – skills that only develop much later. That’s why it’s essential to build good habits early.
By introducing safe road behaviours now – holding hands near roads, stopping before crossing, and sitting in the correct car seat – we’re giving children life-saving tools they’ll carry with them into adulthood. These aren’t just rules; they’re habits that become second nature.
Let’s look at some ways to get involved:
- Register for Road Safety Week
By signing up for Road Safety Week, your setting gains access to a free action pack full of ready-made ideas, stories, and activities. The resources are tailored to various ages – including early years – so you can integrate them easily into your curriculum.
In practice, this could mean:
- Using storybooks, songs, and rhymes about safe travel during circle time.
- Creating cut-out road and crossing templates for small-world play.
- Inviting local police or a “lollipop person” to visit, helping children see real-life road safety in action.
- Host a BeepBeep! Day
Beep Beep! Day focuses on three simple messages for young learners:
- Hold hands with a grown-up near roads.
- Cross at safe places with an adult.
- Always use a child car seat in vehicles.
Ideas to bring it alive:
- Create a “practice pavement” with tape on the floor where children can rehearse stopping, holding hands, and waiting.
- Set up a parents’ information corner with take-home tips.
- Present each child with a Beep Beep! Champion certificate to celebrate their learning.
- Introduce the Green Cross Code – Simply
The Green Cross Code – Stop, Look, Listen, Think – is the foundation of pedestrian safety in the UK. Even the youngest children can grasp the basic sequence.
To embed it:
- Teach one step at a time, using actions to reinforce the words.
- Turn it into a catchy song or rhyme.
- Role-play crossing the road in your setting – one child plays the “car” while the other practises being a safe pedestrian.
- Connect Learning to Everyday Life
Children remember best when lessons are linked to their real-world experiences.
While on a walk, you could:
- Narrate what you’re doing: “We’re stopping at the curb so we can check for cars.”
- Ask simple questions: “Where’s a safe place to cross?” or “Why are we holding hands?”
- Keep the language short and clear: “Cars go fast, so we wait for an adult to help us cross.”
- Keep it Playful!
Road safety doesn’t have to feel like a lecture – in fact, it shouldn’t. Through imaginative play and creativity, children can explore safety in a stress-free way.
Try:
- Road mats with toy cars and people to practise stopping and crossing.
- Poster-making sessions with “Stop, Look, Listen, Think” as the theme.
- A role-play crossing with traffic lights (red means stop, green means go).
- Involve Families and the Wider Community
Consistency between home and setting makes the learning stick.
You might:
- Send home the three Beep Beep! messages with a fun activity for parents to do together.
- Host a road-safety walk with families, modelling safe habits.
- Share photos or videos of children practising road safety (with permissions), so parents can continue the conversation at home.
- Link to the EYFS
Road safety fits naturally into Personal, Social and Emotional Development (PSED) and Physical Development within the EYFS.
- Holding hands, waiting, and listening support self-regulation and fine motor control.
- Talking about feeling safe builds emotional vocabulary and empathy.
- Understanding and following road safety rules supports early citizenship and community awareness.
- Celebrate and Reflect
At the end of Road Safety Week, or your Beep Beep! Day, take a moment to reflect.
Ideas:
- Display a “Safe Steps Gallery” with photos or artwork from the week.
- Ask children to share one thing they’ve learned about road safety.
- Keep reinforcing the messages throughout the year – safety is not a one-off lesson.
Bringing It All Together
Teaching road safety to young children isn’t about overwhelming them with dangers – it’s about gently guiding them towards safe, confident habits through play, modelling, and repetition. Brake’s resources make this easy, giving you everything you need to turn an abstract concept into a tangible, fun, and memorable learning experience.
When we hold a child’s hand and teach them to stop, look, listen, and think, we’re doing more than helping them cross the road safely – we’re setting them on a path towards independence, awareness, and care for themselves and others.
And that’s a journey every early years professional can be proud to support.
