19/06/2026
I had a bit of an alarming incident recently which I think is worth mentioning for the lessons it can teach us about paying attention to our surroundings.
On a lesson near a primary school my learner was just turning left at a busy mini roundabout when a young girl (who only looked about six years old) stepped straight out in front of us without looking.
She was glued to her phone and not paying attention at all. Luckily, my learner was able to stop within about a metre of the girl, and we were only travelling at 10mph thankfully.
So she was unhurt, but it was still quite shocking for us. The girl, however, seemed oblivious to what had happened until she heard a beep from the car behind us because we had had to stop sharply in the road blocking the roundabout.
That was what caught her attention, not the fact that she was crossing a busy road at a roundabout. She didn't seem phased after hearing the beep though, only staring blankly before resuming her walk.
It's really bothered me since, and I've emailed the school to see if they can locate her because I really think the message isn't getting across about paying attention when crossing the road.
And of course there's another discussion to be had about staring at your phone at the same time! All the more relevant now with the ban on use of social media for under 16s coming in soon.
Please if you're a parent remind your children to stop, listen and look both ways when crossing any road, and put the phone down while doing so.
And if you're a learner driver, please be vigilant and don't assume people will do this before crossing, especially if they're on their phone.
It's awful to think that paying more attention to a phone than the road could cause death or serious injury, particularly in young people. Is it worth it?
