Slough Borough Council’s road safety and trading standards teams will be giving advice to parents this month about child car seats and providing free safety seat checks.
Children’s car seats must always be checked by professionals.The event, held outside Mothercare World on Bath Road from June 23 to 27 from 1pm to 5pm, coincides with the Child Accident Prevention Trust’s, community education campaign, with this year’s theme being ‘make a change, make a difference.’
National figures show that four out of five child seats are not fitted correctly.
On a recent roadside stop with Thames Valley Police, the council’s road safety officer found three children travelling without the child seat fitted correctly.
In a crash, these children would have been seriously, if not fatally, hurt.
Caroline Townsend, senior road safety officer for Slough Borough Council, said: “Always get advice when buying a child’s car seat as there is no one seat that fits all cars.
“Also, read the fitting instructions and follow them carefully and buy a seat depending on the child’s weight – not their age.
“It is essential that child seats are fitted properly and the week’s event will help parents find out how to set up the seat or to check their existing one.”
The law requires all children to use a child car seat until they are 135cms (4ft 5”) tall or to their twelfth birthday whichever they reach first.
This is for every journey, however short.
Commissioner for neighbourhoods and renewal, Cllr James Swindlehurst, added: “It’s vital that all children travel safely in cars.
“Car seats save lives and the week event should go a long way in helping to spread the word to parents and offer them the chance to get their child seats checked out for free.”
Slough Borough Council
