To ensure the highest standards of children’s safety during their bus commutes when schools reopen next month for a new academic year, Child Safety Department (CSD), an affiliate of the Supreme Council for Family Affairs (SCFA) in Sharjah, hosted a two-day workshop titled ‘School Bus Safety Golden Rules’, as part of its comprehensive yearly campaign themed, ‘Their Safety First’.

Attended by 900 bus drivers, supervisors and navigators who are responsible for the bus commutes of thousands of schoolers across the emirate of Sharjah, the workshop held in collaboration with Sharjah Police Headquarters, Emirates Transport and Sharjah Civil Defence Authority updated attendees on the best practices of children safety during their transportation to and from their schools.
On the first day, the workshop was attended by 450 drivers and supervisors in the emirate of Sharjah. On day two, 450 school bus staff in the emirate’s central and eastern regions attended the session.

The workshop was designed to raise awareness about the hazardous spaces surrounding the bus while students board or disembark. It also highlighted the importance of ensuring that students are fully evacuated from buses in the morning and evening. The sessions also taught attendees the necessary steps to be taken in case of a fire or accidents, including how to safely evacuate students during such incidents.
Session speakers highlighted bus drivers’ responsibilities to ensure the safety of students, including monitoring their boarding and deboarding from the bus, respecting speed limits and traffic laws and proper steps to take in case of accidents and fire incidents. Participants were also reminded of the child protection hotline number 800700 to report any risks to the safety of children while they are being transported on school buses.

On the role of supervisors, the speakers noted that they help students embark and disembark the buses and make sure that children are received by their families before moving to the next destination, in addition to ensuring the school bus is empty at the end of every journey.

Nahla Hamdan, CSD Deputy Manager, said, the entity works continually to consolidate cross-departmental efforts with its partners in raising the awareness of all those involved in bringing up and caring for the emirate’s children.

This particular workshop, she added, was designed to ensure that school bus drivers and supervisors are fully informed of the health and safety protocols involved in the safe commutes of students because the level of their knowledge and awareness will determine the safety and protection of children, helping them avoid accidents or situations that might put them in danger.