We presented three days of expert opinion, good practice and thought leadership in the Driver Safety Zone this year. It’s a vital update for safety professionals.
The videos of all the theatre sessions are now available to watch, including our mock trial.
We watch what happens when a serious incident involving an employee driving for work results in a prosecution – but was it the driver’s fault or was the employer at fault?
We examine what went wrong, why it went wrong, and what a subsequent investigation and prosecution could look like. More importantly, we look at what companies should be doing to avoid a similar scenario happening to them.
DRIVER SAFETY THEATRE PROGRAMME
We’re presenting three days of expert opinion, good practice and thought leadership in our dedicated presentation theatre. Register below to access the videos.
Tuesday 25th April, 11:00 – 16:00
11:00 | Driving Change: It’s Personal Occupational road safety is all about people, and those people are often thinking about things other than what you’d like them to think about. Mark and Simon will look at some of the key reasons why drivers aren’t always thinking about driver safety and some brand new free resources available to help you land the key messages. Mark’s team manages programmes responsible for reducing collisions on England’s Strategic Route Network involving commercial vehicles including the provision of adapted HGV cabs to police to support their activities, the development the Van Driver Toolkit and CALMDriver, a suicide prevention / mental health resource specifically designed for CV drivers. Simon is a work-related road risk expert with emphasis in helping employers improve their driver safety systems. As Campaign manager for DfBB, he is focused on the safety and wellbeing of those who drive for work, the performance of those who manage them, and the impact their activities have on the environment. |
12:15 | Driver Distraction Mobile phone use is pervasive on UK roads despite recent updates to the law aimed at reducing offending. Enforcement against use of hand-held devices is increasing, however, research shows that legal – hands free – phone use is equally as distracting as illegal use. This presentation looks at the key points to consider in deterring phone use, as well as the real life experience of one employer in reducing driver distraction. Gemma Briggs is a Professor of applied cognitive psychology who has been researching driver inattention for over 15 years. Gemma has published and lectured extensively in the area of driver distraction and has worked closely with leading organisations to promote evidence-based practice. In addition to research, Gemma has expertise in developing innovative approaches to education, informed by psychology, to discourage phone use by drivers. Andy began his career as a civil engineer with Wimpey UK Civil Engineering having graduated from Nottingham University and has since enjoyed a career with Balfour Beatty totalling 25 years. Andy has lead Balfour Beatty’s innovative Asset & Technology Solutions business since 2008. |
13:30 | Driver Impairment Drug driving among commercial vehicle drivers is one the fastest growing and most concerning challenges facing driver safety managers with many police forces reporting more drug driving offences than drink driving ones. This talk will look at the size of the problem, good practice on policy, screening and testing, as well as one employer’s startling discovery when implementing her own testing regime. Ean has worked in dangerous environments from nuclear submarines to oil rigs, travelled on helicopters and in light aircraft, yet believes the most dangerous place to be today is on our roads. With the current proliferation of drugs in society, every HGV, PSV, van and company car driver, is ‘safety critical’. Drawing on Ean’s experience supplying drug testing equipment to safety conscious businesses and all 43 UK police forces, he will discuss the impact of impaired driving on the drivers themselves, the companies they work for and the innocent victims. Lesley O’Brien OBE FCILT is an award-winning professional with over 40 years’ experience in the transport industry and an advocate for women in the industry and the small transport operator. Lesley is a Trustee of the Road Haulage Association Benevolent Fund, a member of the RHA Security Committee and Regional Council and a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport. |
14:45 | Behaviour Change Our speakers for this session are both behavioural change experts in the field of driver safety and will talk us through the latest research on understanding the barriers to developing and sustaining a robust driver safety culture. We’ll also look at how different approaches allow employers to develop intervention frameworks for a greater chance of success. Deirdre is a social scientist and behaviour change specialist. She joined National Highways from DfT to set up a new unit to help understand customers with a desire to make journeys safer, smoother and more sustainable both now and in the future. Deirdre is also a Visiting Professor in Transport Studies at UCL and a Trustee of the Road Safety Trust. David is a professor of psychology at Nottingham Trent university, specialising in traffic and transport psychology. He has published over 100 journal articles and book chapters in the field, and won grant funding of over £4.5m across his career. He is co-founder of Esitu Solutions, a company dedicated to bringing hazard perception to the fleet training market. |
Wednesday 26th April, 11:00 – 16:00
11:00 | Mock Trial with Chris Green On a day that started out just like any other, Bob Adams, a van driver very similar to many of those that work for you, begins his day’s work schedule. Some very common examples of poor driver safety management align and result in a serious incident involving a cyclist – but was it the driver’s fault or what is the employers? We examine what went wrong, why it went wrong, and what a subsequent investigation and prosecution could look like. More importantly, we look at what companies should be doing to avoid a similar scenario happening to them. Chris is a Partner in the Crime and Regulatory team at national law firm Keoghs. Since 1993 he has defended and prosecuted road traffic accidents and health safety and environment cases for companies, organisations and individuals following accidents on road, rail and in the workplace. He appears before the Traffic Commissioner and advises businesses on fleet and occupational road safety policies and crisis management/ incident response procedures. |
12:30 | Incident Investigation Where incidents involving your drivers do happen, it’s vital to learn from them, so policies and procedures can be tightened up where required. This presentation looks at best practice in incident investigation, the legal ramifications on Directors and senior managers of not learning from these incidents, and the major improvements businesses can see in reducing collisions, business disruption and associated costs. Andrew Drewary is a multi-award-winning road safety specialist in collision/incident investigation and has managed the investigation and analysis process for over 40,000 road traffic collisions over the last 21 years. He has provided bespoke, innovative and interactive evidenced based fleet safety solutions through data analysis, innovative driver and management training and collaboration with clients. Charlotte is a specialist criminal and regulatory lawyer and barrister. She is frequently instructed to provide critical advice in the immediate aftermath of a serious or fatal incident. She is recognised nationally as a leader in the field of Fleet Risk and is regularly invited by corporates, insurers, brokers and fleet risk charities to provide training in relation to road safety matters, as well as providing practical solutions to criminal and regulatory challenges. Daniel began his career in the logistics industry 16 years ago and spent many years working throughout Europe where he gained a wealth of knowledge and experience leading to his current role as Transport Safety and Training Manager for one of the UKs leading laundry companies. |
13:45 | Awards Shortlist Panel Discussion Wednesday evening sees the inaugural presentation of the Best Driver Risk Management Performance award at the Safety & Health Excellence Awards. We’ve gathered together driver safety managers from the shortlisted entrants to discuss the challenges faced and the benefits realised from their different approaches. Kelly is editor of Health and Safety Matters (HSM) magazine and has been a journalist for 20 years working on many business-to-business publications such as Solid & Bulks Handling, Cost Sector Catering and Food Ingredients & Analysis. Daniel began his career in the logistics industry 16 years ago and spent many years working throughout Europe where he gained a wealth of knowledge and experience leading to his current role as Transport Safety and Training Manager for one of the UKs leading laundry companies. In 2020, TES 2000 committed itself to setting new benchmarks in road risk management. The Colchester based railway infrastructure and construction company hired Mick Kiely as its first-ever professional fleet manager, who pursued strategic improvement to drive down incident rates and reduce overall fleet costs. As a result, TES, which runs 140 LCVs, has earned two prestigious industry accolades at the 2022 UK Fleet Champions Awards. Reka has been in the food and drink industry for the last 10 years and counting. She specialises in occupational health and safety and has taken on the driver risk management for HEINEKEN UK as part of her current role. Managing driver risk is a huge priority, so she always looks to improve through technology, awareness programmes and employee engagement to positively reinforce good behaviours. |
15:00 | Leadership in Driver Safety Failure to manage driver safety correctly is increasingly going to have an impact on a company’s ability to win new work. We’re going to look at how client requirements to demonstrate effective driver safety management systems, including down through entire supply chains, are now being included in tender requirements. This trend is only going to increase, meaning those who can’t demonstrate effective systems could be excluded from future work, especially lucrative public sector contracts. Jeremy has spent over 30 years working in road casualty reduction as a researcher, practitioner, operations manager, partnership manager, and Director of Research for Road Safety Great Britain (RSGB). Now working for National Highways as Head of Road User Safety, Jeremy leads 5 distinct teams to provide leadership and direction, developing interventions to deliver safety improvements for all road users on the Strategic Road Network. Tavid has been the rail industry road risk technical lead for the last 10 years, and is responsible for helping the industry introduce a collaboration framework to support learning, the sharing of good practice and providing the opportunity for rail companies to benefit from working together on improving the effective management of occupational road risk. Mark Cowan has a wealth of knowledge, experience and practical industry-related skills and is well known and respected in the ready-mixed concrete sector and beyond. Working closely with a number of industry transport specialists, government bodies, trade associations and key stakeholders, ensures that the BAA Transport Committee leads the way in matter that affect the combined industry sectors. Mark is also a Co-Director of MinTrain™, a multi award-winning training and assessment provider. Maureen has more than twenty years’ proven experience in an operational Highways environment providing health, safety and wellbeing programmes and initiatives. She has worked to promote and develop a strong and robust safety culture and to influence mindsets, attitudes and behaviours through direct and clear communication, shared objectives and aims, increased engagement and by recognising the positives and leading by example. |
Thursday 27th April, 11:00 – 16:00
11:00 | Driver Engagement Three of the country’s foremost experts on driver engagement talk through some of the key challenges they’ve faced over the years and the innovative ways they were able to meet those driver safety management challenges. Between them our three panellists have 50 years experience so, if you’re responsible for managing driver safety, this is a discussion not to be missed. Peter has 20 years’ experience within transport, with a passion for health and safety. He started Flagship Partners to make clients safer, greener & greater through consultancy & training. Peter is a mentor and podcast host, specialising in; transport compliance, H&S, training & development and a member of CILT & their Safety Forum. Dr Andrew Kemp has been involved in driver education and behaviour for nearly 40 years. He spent 14 years at Tesco Dotcom and became their National Driver Safety Manager and studying for a Work Based Doctorate at the Middlesex University, before moving to Kent Fire and Rescue currently working for VUE (Telematics and CCTV). Alison has been working in safety and risk for over 25 years, specialising in fleet risk and compliance since 2008. Alison has been successful in reducing fleet risk and collision rates of several large fleets by focusing on driver behaviour and education and sits on a number of industry groups focusing on raising road safety standards. |
12:15 | Driver Wellbeing: What if your job was good for you? Driver wellbeing is a huge area encompassing topics such as physical and mental health, medical conditions, nutrition and fatigue. Driver wellbeing issues could be caused by the working environment, or outside pressures and stresses in the driver’s personal life. Wherever poor wellbeing comes from, it leads to lack of concentration and poor decision making while your drivers are out on the road, which leads to a greater chance of serious incidents. We discuss what good practice looks like in all these areas, not just to minimise poor wellbeing, but to create an environment where drivers can enjoy positive wellbeing and a fulfilling job. Paul has extensive experience in the highways industry having started as an operative in 1982, building a successful career and joining WJ’s Board in 2007. He has a passion for responsible business and the transformation businesses can help create in health, safety and wellbeing; tackling inequality; enhancing Social Value in delivery and the just transition to Net Zero. Marcus has worked with a wide range of organisations – from multi-national household names, smaller companies and the public sector – to address a range of issues relating to tiredness and fatigue. Marcus is also passionate about trying to combat driver fatigue, especially for work and believes that current methods, where they are even employed, are woefully inadequate. Dr Bhatt is a senior clinician on the panel with D4Drivers and conducts medical examinations to determine the fitness of drivers and applicants for drivers’ licenses, including those for DVLA Group 2, and Local Authority Taxi Licencing. |
All presentations and panel discussions will be available on video after the event – register below and we’ll notify you when the videos are live.