The biggest cause of death among schoolchildren is road traffic accidents. Nationally, two thirds of fatalities among this age group are as a result of being hit by a vehicle.

As roads get busier, there is all the more need for children to learn how to cope with traffic. Oxfordshire County Council has a Road Safety Team which uses volunteer tutors and instructors in child pedestrian training, the Footsteps programme and cycle training.

Road Safety Officer Sarah Gniadek-Pitt said: "Without the support of 1,040 volunteers we would not have been able to reach 6,500 children in 2006."

Footsteps aims to make children more aware and help them cope with different traffic situations. The programme has trained volunteer tutors who supervise children for ten to 15 minutes at the roadside, guiding them to make the safest choices about crossing. This takes place three to four times a term.

Volunteers can be parents, carers, grandparents or members of the community.

Yvonne Miller, supervisor from Dalton Barracks Pre-School, Abingdon, said: "Footsteps is a fun, practical and healthy way of teaching children this vital life-saving skill. We have incorporated the training into the school's timetable and have been running the programme successfully."

Cycle training involves teaching skills using a T-junction. They are taught how to negotiate left and right turns from a minor road on to a major road, and major on to minor, and also how to overtake parked vehicles.

They can also learn about the Highway Code using the Arrive Alive book.

The volunteers are recruited by schools and usually work during school hours at a time that suits both the volunteer and the school. Each volunteer gives approximately seven hours of their time for each group of up to 12 children they train.

Coun Lesley Legge, chairman of Oxfordshire County Council, said: "Having been a cycle instructor myself, I am very aware of the dedication of the volunteers who give their time to train our youngsters. Without the support of the volunteers children in Oxfordshire would not be benefiting from cycle training.

"As a county we have seen a decrease in the number of injuries to child cyclists and I am sure this is due in no small way to the numbers of youngsters trained."

If you would like to be involved in the Footsteps scheme, contact Sarah Gniadek-Pitt on 01235 771095 or email sarah.gniadekpitt@oxfordshire.gov.uk If you would like to be involved in the cycle training, contact Wendy Jennings on 01844 355963 or email wendy.jennings@oxfordshire.gov.uk For more information about road safety education visit the website www.roadsafety@oxfordshire.gov.uk To contribute to this column, contact Oxfordshire Community and Voluntary Action by email at voluntaryvoice@ocva.org.uk