RS Clare is pleased to confirm the renewal of its partnership with the Rail Safe Friendly programme for a further 12 months. This continued commitment reflects our position that structured rail safety education must be sustained year-round. Timed to coincide with Rail Safety Week, this announcement reaffirms our dedication to ensuring that young people across the UK have access to the knowledge they need to stay safe around the railway.
RS Clare recognises that railway environments present specific and serious hazards, including high-voltage electrification, fast-moving rolling stock, and restricted clearances. These risks are most effectively mitigated through sustained education rather than one-off awareness campaigns.
The scale of the challenge
According to the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) Report covering April 2023 to March 2024, multiple fatalities and serious injuries occurred on UK railways, with a significant proportion linked to trespass and a lack of awareness of railway-specific hazards. The data underlines why rail safety education remains a national priority.
A consistent finding is that many incidents are preventable. The message at the core of both the Rail Safe Friendly programme and Rail Safety Week is direct: railway hazards can cause severe harm in seconds, and informed behaviour saves lives.
Programme progress to date
The Rail Safe Friendly programme continues to expand its reach across the education and rail sectors. Recent figures demonstrate strong momentum:
Working towards full UK coverage by 2027
The programme presents a defined and ambitious target: to raise rail safety awareness in all schools throughout the UK by 2027.
By renewing for a further 12 months, RS Clare contributes directly to this timeline. Our continued backing helps ensure that resources remain freely available to schools and that the programme can scale towards complete national coverage.
Why young people’s rail safety awareness matters
Children and young people are a particularly vulnerable group around railways, with the associated risks not always fully understood. The Rail Safe Friendly programme addresses this through accessible, structured, age-appropriate educational materials designed for use within schools, and RS Clare’s renewed 12-month commitment ensures that this provision continues uninterrupted.
Support the mission
This announcement underlines our position that protecting young people around railways requires consistent, year-round effort from the industry, the education sector, and supporting partners alike.
Free resources are available to help keep young people safe, and joining the programme directly supports the goal of reaching every UK school by 2027.
To learn more, access the available resources, to become a partner, like RS Clare or register your child’s school, visit railsafefriendly.com. Together, we can ensure that no child becomes the next statistic.
