About us
Our Program is proudly funded by Transport for NSW, in partnership with Macquarie University.
Kids and Traffic, Early Childhood Road Safety Education Program is in its fourth decade of a shared governance partnership between Transport for NSW (TfNSW), the NSW Department of Education, Catholic Schools NSW and the Association of Independent Schools of NSW. This unique collaboration extends beyond program planning and resource development to joint initiatives, dissemination of policy advice and filtering of educational insights into statutory and policy documents.
Kids and Traffic was located at the Institute of Early Childhood, Macquarie University from 1991. A Memorandum of Understanding was signed in 1995, by the Chief Executive, NSW Roads and Traffic Authority, and the Vice Chancellor, Macquarie University. Since 2003, the Program has been delivered in association with wholly owned, non-profit entities of Macquarie University. From 2020, Kids and Traffic works in partnership with MGSM.
Our goal
To achieve improvements in young children’s safety in the short term and develop safe community attitudes to road use in the long term by:
Increasing awareness of the need for road safety education for children and their families.
Fostering developmentally, culturally and socially appropriate practices for the delivery of road safety education with early childhood educators and tertiary early childhood education students.
Ensuring that young children are given consistent road safety messages by both early childhood educators and families.
Our philosophy
The philosophical guidelines underpinning our work include:
- Responding to individual differences in the developmental pathways of young children
- Acknowledging and supporting the different learning styles of young children
- Supporting partnerships between early childhood educators and families
- Recognising the uniqueness of local communities
- Respecting social and cultural diversity.
Our guiding principles
- Principle 1:
Young children are not and cannot be made responsible for their own safety in and around vehicles. Adults are responsible for the safety of young children.
- Principle 2:
The use of consistent Key Road Safety Messages by all the adults in a young child’s life – families, educators, and other carers – enables them to engage young children in road safety learning without any expectation that they are then safe and independent road users.
- Principle 3:
Consistent road safety education is a crucial element of the Safe System. Road Safety information, including advice and Key Road Safety Messages for children and adults, must be determined in ongoing consultation with recognised road safety authorities.
- Principle 4:
Early childhood road safety learning and teaching need to encompass all aspects of best practice in early childhood education. Specifically, in early childhood services, road safety education needs to align with the National Quality Framework for Early Childhood Education and Care and the evidence-based Belonging, Being and Becoming: The Early Years Learning Framework for Australia (EYLF).
Our roles
We provide professional development, road safety information, resources, advice and support to:Â Â
- Educators, management, staff and families in early childhood services
- Families and carers of young children
- Universities, TAFE colleges and other Registered Training Organisations
- TfNSW, Police, local councils and local communities
- Health, libraries and early intervention and family support services
- Peak early childhood and road safety organisations
- State, local and federal government departments and representatives.
Meet the team
Maureen Fegan OAM
Program Director
Louise Cosgrove
Team Leader
Early Childhood Road Safety Education Consultant
Amanda Menzies
Early Childhood Road Safety Education Consultant
Melinda Drury-Lenci
Early Childhood Road Safety Education Consultant
Karen Rose
Early Childhood Road Safety Education Consultant
Rebecca Dunn
Early Childhood Road Safety Education Consultant
Caroline Brigden
Workshop Presenter
