Young Drivers at Work

Phase one comprised a research study to get a better understanding of the risks young drivers face at work. Based on the research, RoSPA developed a workshop and online toolkit.

The project was conducted with support from the Department for Transport’s road safety partnership grant and with the help of a working group including the DfT, DSA, Buckinghamshire and Lancashire County Councils, Birmingham City Council, Roadsafe, and Tesco.com.

The first phase was a research project. The scope was to get a better understanding of the risks faced, and created, by young (17-24 years) drivers at work, including:

• The views of employers on how well the present system of driver training and testing prepares young people for the sort of driving they do for work.

• Whether employers would recognise and make use of a ‘driving for work qualification’ when recruiting or managing young staff who drive as part of their job.

And, if so, what should be included in such a qualification or training programme?

The results were published in a report in March 2009. Based on this research RoSPA developed a Young Drivers at Work Workshop. The aims of the workshop are to:

• Develop the participants’ knowledge about the specific issues to do with driving for work raised by employers in the Young Drivers at Work report.

• Help young at-work drivers understand how they can develop the additional skills they need when driving for work

• Identify new ways that the employer can help their younger drivers use the road safely, by understanding the influence that they are having from the perspective of their young drivers.

The project also includes an online toolkit to equip employers to run a workshop themselves and understand the concepts behind the workshop.