Decision to cut road safety GCSE reversed

Funding cuts to GCSE courses teaching students road safety have been reversed.

Grants to schools to teach GCSEs in Motor Vehicles and Road User Studies Removed in 2023Along with other looming cuts to education.

The Department of Education (DFI) had stopped providing textbooks and funds to schools to buy mopeds to teach the subject.

But Infrastructure Minister John O’Dowd has now restored the funding.

O’Dowd made the announcement during a visit to St Mark’s High School in Warrenpoint, one of around 60 schools in Northern Ireland offering GCSEs.

He said that young drivers were more likely to be affected by serious road traffic collisions and that GCSEs helped “to prepare young people to make good road safety decisions”.

As part of GCSEs students learn to drive mopeds.

As well as taking a written test, they are also judged on how well and safely they can test and ride it.

Run by the Council for the Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment (CCEA), GCSEs teach pupils about motor vehicles as well as maintaining the Highway Code and driving safely.

St. Mark’s High School has over 1,000 students.

One student, Matthew, said learning to ride a moped was what attracted him to taking his GCSEs.

“I come from a farming background so I’ve always been around machines,” he told BBC News NI.

“I just thought it would be a good topic to do.

“It has increased my knowledge of road safety – recognizing road signs, speed limits and high-risk areas of the road.”

Amy said that learning to drive a moped was “an extremely enjoyable experience”.

“This helped us increase our knowledge and awareness of different road conditions,” he said.

“I hope it will help me, especially in my (driving) theory test.”

St. Mark’s High School principal Aidan McGivern said the theme was “something different”.

“It’s very practical, they’re outside in all weather,” he said.

“They are learning skills and rules of the road.

“It’s something they’ll carry with them for the rest of their lives.

“We all know that young people are eager to get out on the road, they are eager to get out and they need to be safe.”

Eamon McPolin has taught Motor Vehicle and Road User Studies at GCSE for over 20 years and is the Chief Examiner for the subject.

He hopes the restoration of funding for GCSEs will mean more schools will introduce them.

“The funding will allow schools to purchase mopeds which are essential for teaching the practical aspect of the subject,” he said.

“It focuses heavily on vehicle control and road user behavior which are essential life skills for pupils to navigate the roads.”

Mr McPolin said he was concerned that cuts to schools’ funding for GCSEs would mean “road safety will suffer”.

“If you don’t have the practical aspect of the subject then it loses its attraction for students,” he said.

“It’s a two-year course, and its content focuses heavily on road safety situations.

“This is a way of delivering a very strong road safety message through this theme.”

Funding to schools for road safety workbooks and calendars Also cut by DfI in 2023,