‘Loophole’ in road safety legislation prompts Derry mum of two to take action

 Almost 40% of Northern Ireland’s children from P1-P4 regularly travel to and from school in cars, without adequate protection, it was claimed today.

Research carried out by BubbleBum – the Northern Ireland company which has produced the world’s first inflatable, safety approved, portable car booster seat – will shock parents and road safety chiefs. 

 “Our survey was conducted in Primary Schools throughout Northern Ireland,” explains Grainne Kelly, founder of BubbleBum.  “It was based on a sample of more than 1,000 children using a school from each area board and the feedback shows that 37% of all children from P1-P4 do not use a booster seat on the school run.

 ‘The statistics show clearly that many adults responsible for carrying children in their vehicles aren’t thinking twice about putting their young passengers’ safety at risk.”

 Entrepreneur and mother of two, Grainne, has made it her new year’s resolution to raise public awareness of child car safety. In doing so she hopes that ministers will review and amend what she describes as dated legislation which permits children to travel unprotected without an appropriate booster seat for ‘unexpected’ journeys. 

 “Official PSNI statistics show that every year in Northern Ireland there are around 1,000 child casualties in road traffic collisions. So we’re calling on the legislators to close the loophole and asking the question: should safety really be a choice?”

Entrepreneur Grainne Kelly has already contacted senior figures in the DoE and has received backing from Northern Ireland school principals, including acting Principal Tony Morrison of Chapel Road Primary School in Derry, who said:

 “We were shocked at the statistics Grainne presented to us about the lack of protection for our children while on the school run. The safety of our children is of paramount importance and we would support a change in legislation which tightened the legal loophole that currently allows children to travel without appropriate booster seats. We understand the difficulties drivers sometimes have providing suitable booster seats but would encourage everyone to ensure that children have the protection they need on car journeys.”

Grainne Kelly developed the BubbleBum in response to her own frustration and experience as a working mother.

“I just wanted to create a product that I could send everywhere with my children to keep them safe in the event of unexpected journeys,” she explained.

“Modern families do a lot of travelling in cars, coaches and taxis, and bulky booster seats just aren’t practical to carry around even for one child, never mind if you have two or three. The fact that more than a third of children from P1-P4 travel regularly to and from school without proper protection in many ways reflects how impractical and off-putting some of the current seat booster options can be. 

BubbleBum has been designed to be small, light, practical and so easy to use that it’s perfect even for quick taxi journeys and travel abroad. Plus it looks good, so kids don’t mind carrying it around in their rucksacks or schoolbags.”

Further information on the BubbleBum is available at www.bubblebum.co.uk