The safety risks of worn tyres

* Collaborative post

When it comes to car safety and maintenance one of the most important checks drivers should make is the condition of the vehicle’s tyres.

For safety it is imperative that tyres are checked on a regular basis, with responsible drivers checking tyre pressure, tread depth, ensuring tyres are fit for purpose and looking at overall condition of tyres to ensure there is no sign of defect or damage.

When it comes to tyre tread depth there are safety and legal consequences if tyres are worn. As the safety risks of worn tyres are an accident waiting to happen we are going to take a look at tyre tread depth and the safety risks associated with worn tyres.

Tackling the school run and the Churchill Lollipopper Fund - Providing a safeguard around our schools.

Unlike when I was a child and lived miles from our school and had to be driven to school, as we live relatively close to Bug's school everyday we complete the school run by walking to and from school. Whilst I enjoy walking Bug to and from school especially as we chat without having the stress of driving through the 'traffic jams of school run time' distracting me from hearing about his day and I get to babywear Jelly Bean, walking the school run can be a dangerous as we tackle road crossings and traffic.

As well as having to avoid perils such as busy roads with cars driving too quickly, hectic road crossings and copious amounts of dog mess that we do our best to not step in we also have to face an onslaught of parents abandoning their cars on the pavements as they rush to get to school on time and want to get as close to the school as possible even if that means mounting the pavement regardless of those walking along to school as we do. I have shockingly and worryingly witnessed cars racing up onto the pavement only inches away and without a second thought of safety for a walking family!

Are you driving on the right side of the law?

As soon as I turned 17 I put on my L plates and started learning driving. When I learnt how to drive and passed my test over 10 years ago (eek where have the years gone?) I soon realised the importance of knowing and sticking to driving laws.

Whilst the obvious driving offences such as speeding, drink driving and dangerous driving should be known by all drivers there are a number of driving laws that are in place in the UK that most drivers won’t know about.

Simpson Millar have created a Driving on the Right Side of Law infographic to showcase driving laws that may not be common knowledge to the majority of UK drivers who may well be breaking the law without even knowing it.

Keeping safe on the road – tyre safety.

As our family is growing with the impending arrival of our second child Jelly Bean due in July we recently decided to change our car, switching from a very compact car to a slightly larger car better suited for a growing family – a Ford Focus.

Whilst our new (second hand) car is nothing fancy having learnt a lot about car safety over my 13 years of being a driver – even learning how to do a basic service myself - I am passionate about making sure cars are safe and roadworthy.

The importance of making sure our car is roadworthy and safe is even more imperative now that I am a parent, not only because our children travel in the car but also because I don’t want to put myself or Lee at extra risk as I want us to be alive and healthy for many years to come for our children.

Whilst there are many factors that affect the safety and roadworthiness of a car, one car safety factor that is often overlooked is the importance of tyres.

Put simply tyres are essential for safe driving.

Tyres are the only connection your car has to the road.

They have 4 vital functions that affect safe driving –

* Provide grip for braking and acceleration

* Maintain steering and directional control

* Act as a shock absorber for vibrations from the road

* Support the weight of the car

Keeping children safe on the roads - Road Safety Quiz.

At the end of next month Bug will be the grand old age of four.

It seems as if the last four years have flown by, gone in the blink of an eye with him growing up so fast as my little baby has turned into a big boy.

Over the years we have taught him a lot of things and watched him learn so much. We have seen him learn to walk and talk, watch him master new skills such as learning to scoot and climb independently and seen and helped him develop his speech and learn things like his numbers and colours s as well as begin to master his skill of drawing and writing.

We have also been passionate about supporting his learning of skills that will help him be independent, skills that he will need to know about to live in the world especially as we won’t always be there right next to him. We have always been keen for him to develop his social skills and learn about behaving well; being nice to others and being happy to share especially share his toys with his friends.

 Another thing we have been passionate about him learning is road safety.

We believe him knowing the importance of road safety is vital and we are keen to infuse the idea and significance of road safety into his mind so that he learns from a young age how important it is for him to be safe and vigilant whilst walking, scooting or riding his bike on the road.

I remember my mum teaching me as a child the importance of road safety and the Hedgehog Road Safety campaigns of my childhood aimed at helping children understand the dangers of crossing the road safely, with the slogan “Stop. Look. Listen. Live” having resonated and stayed with me over the years.