Launch of Debra has a plan storybook

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Kingston Council’s Road Safety and Travel Awareness Unit unveiled a new Debra the Zebra book. ‘Debra has a plan’ tells the story of how the Royal Borough’s green travel champion helps improve road safety for children.

With the help of some Junior Road Safety Officers and other friends they develop a School Travel Plan, so that over a period, children are helped to walk and cycle to school, rather than rely on the car to take them.

James Parker, Kingston Council’s Road Safety and Travel Awareness Manager, who wrote the story explained, “Debra the Zebra is an important character in the lives of local school children. She makes regular appearances at primary schools and at other events in the borough, and in February she was even the special guest star in a school pantomime.”

A recent Walking to School campaign invited children to design a new character who would become Debra’s friend and help her with travel awareness promotion in the Royal Borough. Olivia Wallwork, a pupil at St Paul’s CE Junior School in Kingston, developed the winning character, Leon the Lion. Leon is featured in the story and helps Debra by organising a walking bus so that the children can enjoy walking to school together.”

Debra and Leon are not the only local figures to star in the new book. It also features the Mayor, Councillor Yogan Yoganathan, who invites the heroes of the story to the Guildhall so that he can congratulate them on their successful travel plan. The Mayor was also among a number of guests who attended a special first reading of the book at St Paul’s Junior School on 8 March.

The book was distributed to primary schools throughout the borough during March 2006 to support the Spring Walking to School campaign and to assist schools, all of whom are required by central and local government to develop a School Travel Plan by 2009.

For further information on school travel plans telephone James Parker, Road Safety and Travel Awareness Manager on 020 8547 5923 or email james.parker@rbk.kingston.gov.uk