The Leeds United Foundation teamed up with Network Rail recently to teach young children from a number of local schools about the importance of rail safety.
The club’s official charity have been supporting Network Rail and their various partners for a number of years, to help deliver important safety messages that may help to save lives around railway stations.
The various rail industry partners involved in the fun and educational sessions, included the British Transport Police (BTP), Railway Children, the Rail Safety Standards Board, Samaritans, Northern, CrossCountry and Transpennine Express.
Also joining the special workshops at Leeds Station were a trio of Leeds United Under-21 players, including Sean McGurk, Charlie Allen, and Jeremiah Mullen. The young players were all on hand to join a group of young students during one of the workshops being delivered, taking part in some of the fun activities that were being used to promote railway safety and highlight the hidden dangers that youngsters may not be aware of.
Around 600 primary school pupils were involved in the exciting week and given the chance to experience what being a train driver is really like. The youngsters were also given a station tour learning more about how to move safely around the station, and spent time with the BTP, who showed them how they use technology to respond to trespassers on the railway.
Chloe Creffield, Community Safety Manager for Network Rail’s North and East Route, said: “It was great to see so many children engaged in rail safety over the course of Safety Week. We’ve run these sessions in partnership with Leeds United for a number of years now, and it’s fantastic that they continue to go from strength to strength.
“It’s so important to spread the railway safety message and we’re delighted that we managed to reach so many young people from all across West Yorkshire. I’d like to say a big thank you to all the schools and partners who took part this year, and we look forward to hosting many more Safety Weeks in the years to come.”
Paul Wood, inspector for British Transport Police Leeds, added: "Engaging with children and young people is key to our work in ensuring the railway remains a safe place.
"Fun and interactive events like this deliver our life saving messages in an accessible way that children can understand, and feedback shows they really strike a chord with young minds."
Sean McGurk, one of the standout players during a promotion-winning campaign for our Under-21s in the 2022/23 season, gave his thoughts after attending the event.
He said: “This type of event, I think it’s massive. The kids were made up to be here and were able to learn about staying safe around a train station.
“I’ve been on visits a few times now and it is always good to give back to the community. When you see the smiles on their faces, it puts one on ours as well. It’s important for everyone to learn about safety and we were glad to play a small part in helping with that.”
