ROAD safety champion GEM Motoring Assist insist that child pedestrian training needs to become a priority to prevent deaths on the road.

Children in the UK are more likely to be killed by vehicles on the road than in almost any other European country and GEM claim basic instruction has been neglected since the demise of the Green Cross Code Man and the Tufty Club.

GEM, which works for the safety of all road users, is praising a child pedestrian training scheme for five to seven year olds called Starting Out, that 10 schools have already taken part in.

David Williams, chief executive of GEM, said projects of this kind need to be operated throughout the UK if the number of child deaths on the road is to be brought under control and injuries reduced.