A catalogue of 'missed opportunities' to save young lives

Sharron Huddleston and Dr Ian Greenwood

Earlier this month, I had the privilege of delivering the keynote speech at the highly regarded UKROEd/NPCC Roads Policing Conference 2024, alongside two inspirational campaigners - Dr Ian Greenwood and Sharron Huddleston. Speaking in my capacity as Head of Communications at RoadPeace, the national charity for road crash victims, I was honoured to tell the conference about Ian and Sharron's courageous efforts to campaign for a much-needed and long-overdue Graduated Driving Licensing system in the UK. Ian and Sharron both tragically lost their children in road crashes caused by young drivers and have campaigned for a Graduated Driving Licensing system, ever since. Ian's 12-year-old daughter, Alice, was killed when a car driven by a young speeding driver collided with her mother’s car in 2008. Alice was killed and her Mum and sister were both seriously injured. The young driver and his passenger in the other vehicle also died. Sharron's 18-year-old daughter, Caitlin, was killed in a crash on a rural road in Cumbria in July 2017. She was a passenger in a car, driven by her 18-year-old friend, who also died, who had passed her test just four months previously.

Rebecca Morris

What is Graduated Driving Licensing?

Graduated Driving Licensing is a system which gradually introduces young, novice drivers to full driving privileges. It typically involves a multi-stage process where drivers start with certain restrictions to reduce risk.

In some countries, new drivers are restricted from carrying passengers of the same age group or driving between midnight and 4 am for the first six months after passing their test. These measures help them gain experience in safer conditions before moving on to full driving privileges.

In countries including Canada, Australia and New Zealand, where Graduated Driving Licensing has been in place for many years, there has been a reduction in deaths and serious injuries in crashes involving young drivers by between 20% and 40%.

Despite strong evidence supporting Graduated Driving Licensing, its introduction in the UK has been continually postponed.

The power of victims' voices

Dr Greenwood and Sharron Huddleston’s stories were heart-wrenching reminders of the real human toll behind road safety statistics.

The power of their testimonies underlined the need for immediate action to tackle the root causes of young driver crashes.

At this influential event, which took place on October 9 and 10, we united in calling for the government to implement GDL without further hesitation. RoadPeace remains at the forefront of this fight, advocating for road safety policies that prevent more families from enduring such devastating loss.