First aid sessions which aim to reduce the number of people on scooters or motorbikes killed or seriously injured is back for the start of the new riding season.
 
BikerDown! is an interactive workshop offering riders and pillions the chance to learn basic first aid as well as gain an awareness of road traffic collision management.
 
Delivered by South Yorkshire Police’s Community Safety Team, the session provides the knowledge to safely help at the scene of a collision, as well as administering potentially lifesaving first aid.
 
Margaret Lawson, Community Safety Manager, said: “As a rider you are more likely to filter through stationary traffic and be confronted with a collision, or come across an incident on remote country roads.
 
“By responding quickly, and with basic first aid, you can make a tremendous difference to a person’s chances of surviving.
 
“Although BikerDown! centres around a collision involving a rider, the skills and knowledge are equally as useful if you come across any vehicle whether four, three or two-wheeled.”


 
In South Yorkshire in 2021, 92 powered-two-wheeler riders were seriously injured in a road traffic collision and sadly eight of those riders lost their lives.
 
And despite only making up around one per cent of vehicle traffic, statistics show that riders account for around 20 per cent of road fatalities across Great Britain.

A spokeswoman for South Yorkshire Safer Roads Partnership (SYSRP) said: “Motorcyclists are one of our priority road user groups and we continue to work with partner organisations, like the National Young Rider Forum, to offer advice and information to riders.
 
“The BikerDown! training is a valuable part of our toolkit as we work together to try and prevent unnecessary loss of life on our roads.
 
“Keeping riders safe is not just down to the riders themselves, we all have a part to play in safe road use and shared responsibility is key to saving lives.
 
“As we see more and more riders back out on the roads, please look out for each other, be aware of filtering motorcyclists and take extra time to look and look again, particularly at junctions.
 
“Not everyone on our roads is on four wheels.”
 
SYSRP recently launched a new casualty reduction strategy with a target of halving the number of people killed or seriously injured on local roads by the year 2030.
 
Partners have adopted a Safe System approach to road safety which has five pillars of action, including Post-Collision Care, which BikerDown! is part of.
 
Interventions are also being delivered under the remaining four pillars: Safe Road Users, Safe Roads, Safe Speeds and Safe Vehicles.
 
Dates now available to book onto:

• Wednesday 28 June

• Wednesday 26 July

• Wednesday 23 August

• Wednesday 27 September

The sessions will take place at the Lifewise Centre, Hellaby, Rotherham, from 6.30pm to 8.30pm.

To book your place or for any enquiries please email: lifewise.booking@southyorks.pnn.police.uk
Please leave your name, postcode, preferred session and contact telephone number.