Child Seat Safety was established in 2011 by Claire Waterhouse and Julie Dagnall. Their experience of working in the field of road safety education, training, accident investigation and traffic engineering spans over 50 years. During this time, they have successfully developed and coordinated a wide range of initiatives for practitioners and the public. Road deaths make up one of the biggest proportions of child deaths in the UK. In-car safety and the safe restraining of children in vehicles is vital to saving lives during a collision.

Since 2013, one of the main projects they are involved in is child seat check events; they have checked almost 10,000 car seats in this time providing a wealth of data around the use and misuse of seats.

During the check, a range of data is collected, including vehicle make, model and registration year, make and model of the Child Restraint System (CRS) present and where the CRS was positioned in the vehicle.

Data is also collated on faults found with the CRS or the fitment of the child within the seat.

This data collection identifies how parents/carers are using seats and fitting children, what they are getting wrong and why and how messages can be directed to reduce this misuse.

This presentation will drill down and analyse the data and look at restraint use, non-use, incorrect and inappropriate use and to also consider the use of appropriate legal restraints for premature infants, as their safety is currently compromised by R129.

Claire Waterhouse and Julie Dagnall, co-directors, Child Seat Safety

Julie Dagnall and Claire Waterhouse both have more than 20 years’ experience in developing and delivering training courses and educational lessons, and are acknowledged experts in the field of child in-car safety.

Both enjoyed long careers as local authority road safety officers in the north west of England, before setting up Child Seat Safety in 2011. They have developed and launched a nationally recognised qualification in Child Seat Safety Awareness. Accredited by the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH), it assists retailers, manufacturers, public service safety advisors and emergency service personnel, in providing the right advice to parents and carers.

As Road Safety GB's national specialist on in-car safety, Julie Dagnall advises local authorities and the public on all aspects of child car seats.