Living in Lancashire wave 26
| Purpose | The objectives for the road safety questions were: * perceptions of road safety and priorities for improving it; * the take-up of additional driver and rider training; * educating children about road safety; and * the effectiveness of road safety campaigns. The objectives of the health questions were the: * priorities for health; * perceptions of the support for older people in Lancashire; * knowledge of Adult and Community Services (ACS); and * knowledge of how to access services. |
|---|---|
| Subject |
Road safety Adults with additional needs Older people |
| Commissioned by | Corporate Research and Intelligence Team, Policy Unit |
| Geographic area |
All of Lancashire |
|---|---|
| Method |
Questionnaire - postal |
| Consultation with |
Life in Lancashire panel |
| Date | 02/09/2009 - 09/10/2009 |
| Undertaken by | Corporate Research and Intelligence Team, Policy Unit |
Results
| Number in sample | 2816 |
|---|---|
| Number of responses | 2331 |
| Response rate | 82% |
| Key findings | Findings for health * Seven in ten respondents consider their health to be good. * Lack of exercise is considered the most important health problem in neighbourhoods (44%). Alcohol misuse (29%), obesity (27%), cancer (26%) and poor diet (24%) are all considered as important problems. Drug misuse was about twice as likely to be mentioned in Burnley and Pendle, while loneliness or isolation is the most mentioned problem in Ribble Valley. * Highest priorities for improving health and wellbeing are to provide more activities for young people (38%), provide more support for older people (28%) and more opportunities for physical activity (24%). * Only one in seven felt they knew at least a fair amount about the work of Adult and Community Services in Lancashire, with the same proportion feeling informed about them. * The services respondents were most aware that ACS provides are support for people with a learning disability, mental health problem or physical disability and supporting older people coming out of hospital to get back on their feet. * A quarter of respondents thought Adult and Community Services in Lancashire do a good job. Findings for road safety * Respondents felt safest when travelling in a car and when travelling on buses. Only three-quarters of pedestrians felt safe, cycling being perceived as unsafe. * Areas that came out as highest priorities for the authorities were to have more emphasis on helping young people drive more safely and ensuring driving standards and tests reflect the skills needed for driving today. * If people wanted to take additional driver or rider training they would most likely contact the Driving Standards Agency (50%). And most people would look for information on an internet search engine (70%), particularly among younger groups. * The speed awareness course and the advanced driver training were the highest attended courses. A third of drivers don't expect to take any additional training in the future. * The vast majority felt road safety education is an important part of a child's development, and many thought it should definitely be taught as part of the school curriculum. * Among the three in ten respondents who have children under 16, the majority are worried about their child's safety on the roads. * A quarter of parents said that their child hadn't received road safety training (25%). Those whose children had received training mostly said it was taught by them (94%). Parents tended to be satisfied with their child's road safety training (77%). * More information about road safety for parents and their children would be useful for families in the form of activity books and booklets. |
| Outcomes | Safer driving * The county council are working with the Driving Standards Association on a revamp of their Pass Plus Scheme to ensure it reflects the skills needed for driving today. * The free scheme called the Pre Pass Support Scheme helps mentors understand how they can provide the best support and advice for their learner. The course is currently promoted widely on the internet, through mail shots and on Rock FM. At the moment the county council doesn't use social networking sites, but if this changes we'd use them to raise awareness of the scheme through Facebook and videos on YouTube. Training courses * All drivers, both learners and current drivers, are encouraged by the Road Safety Group to take further driver training, and anyone taking one of our courses is given further information and advice. Recent changes to the county council's website should make searching for our services easier. * The cost of road safety training courses is reviewed annually. As a not-for-profit local authority we ensure that our courses are as cost effective as possible while ensuring that all outgoings are covered. The funding for some courses is coming to an end so we will be looking at what courses we can offer in the future. Road safety campaigns * The research showed that road safety campaigns are effective in changing behaviour, so in February the Road Safety Group are running a media campaign centring on the first legal case for corporate manslaughter (for driving for work). Its aim is to raise awareness of companies' responsibilities for the health and safety of their employees and vehicles on the road. All companies should have a policy to manage road safety, under their 'duty of care' obligation. Supporting parents * Parents have a massive role in teaching road safety. We know that children copy their parents and if their behaviour on the roads isn't appropriate then any road safety training and education received in school by us will be forgotten. More research with parents is going to be commissioned to find out how we can support them in teaching their children about road safety. And the information we produce will be reviewed to make sure it gives parents the skills they need to reinforce road safety knowledge. |
Project document(s)
Report(s)
Questionnaire(s)
Contact information
For more information about this research contact:
Melissa Sherliker
01772 535019
Email: haveyoursay@lancashire.gov.uk