Glenravel pupils make their mark on Safer Roads Campaign

Children in the Glenravel area are putting their mark on a new community campaign to make rural roads in the area safer.
Pupils from Mary Queen of Peace PS are making their mark on a new community campaign to make rural roads safer. They are designing posters that will go on permanent display outside their school warning motorists to slow down.Pupils from Mary Queen of Peace PS are making their mark on a new community campaign to make rural roads safer. They are designing posters that will go on permanent display outside their school warning motorists to slow down.
Pupils from Mary Queen of Peace PS are making their mark on a new community campaign to make rural roads safer. They are designing posters that will go on permanent display outside their school warning motorists to slow down.

Pupils from Mary Queen of Peace Primary School are designing posters that will go on permanent display outside their school warning motorists to ‘slow down’ in the Glenravel area, which is made up of the three villages of Martinstown, Cargan and

Newtowncommelin.

Organised by Glenravel and District Community and Residents Association, the ‘Safer Life Campaign’, funded by the Housing Executive, aims to educate drivers and schoolchildren about being road aware.

Mary Queen of Peace Primary pupils making posters that will go on permanent display outside their school warning motorists to slow down.Mary Queen of Peace Primary pupils making posters that will go on permanent display outside their school warning motorists to slow down.
Mary Queen of Peace Primary pupils making posters that will go on permanent display outside their school warning motorists to slow down.

Marian Maguire from the local group said the safety initiative came about following a number of road traffic accidents.

She said: “As the ‘Gateway to the Glens’ we attract tourist traffic, alongside local drivers, on this main road which runs through the villages. It is a hotspot for accidents, within six months last year there were three car accidents.

“The campaign aims to highlight the importance of community safety by engaging with local children who are erecting community storyboards. We also want to enhance children’s knowledge of bike safety and encourage them to wear hi-visibility vest and

helmets going to and returning from school whether they are walking or cycling.

Pictured, from left, Julie Moore (Housing Executive), Marian Maguire (Glenravel & District Community & Residents Association), Rosalind Lowry (MEA Council), Margaret Kerr (Community Association), and teacher Eithne Sharkey (Mary Queen of Peace PS), with artwork created by pupils for the Safer Life Campaign in Glenravel.Pictured, from left, Julie Moore (Housing Executive), Marian Maguire (Glenravel & District Community & Residents Association), Rosalind Lowry (MEA Council), Margaret Kerr (Community Association), and teacher Eithne Sharkey (Mary Queen of Peace PS), with artwork created by pupils for the Safer Life Campaign in Glenravel.
Pictured, from left, Julie Moore (Housing Executive), Marian Maguire (Glenravel & District Community & Residents Association), Rosalind Lowry (MEA Council), Margaret Kerr (Community Association), and teacher Eithne Sharkey (Mary Queen of Peace PS), with artwork created by pupils for the Safer Life Campaign in Glenravel.

“We also want to involve parents and other residents in the campaign and highlight the issue to voluntary and statutory agencies so that it remains a priority for them. It’s also important that motorists get the message to slow down when travelling through our villages and be aware that these are residential areas.

“We’d like to thank the Housing Executive for funding the initiative that is helping to make local people safer on our roads.”

Housing Executive Area Manager Mairead Myles Davey said: “We are delighted to support this worthwhile campaign which is helping to create safer and more vibrant neighbourhoods.”