The visit to Cameley C of E V C Primary School was arranged by VolkerHighways and Bath & North East Somerset Council, as part of ongoing educational efforts by the council’s Road Safety Team. Each class had the opportunity to see the gritter up close as they were taught road safety information and tips.

Councillor Manda Rigby, cabinet member for Transport said: “Thank you to Cameley School for having us, and a big thank you to the pupils who asked our staff amazing questions.

“Our road gritters keep our priority highways running throughout the colder winter weather and this was a really positive way to get children engaged and thinking about how they can stay safe on our roads this winter.”  

The gritter, the largest in our fleet and fitted with a snow plough, made the short journey to the school from our depot in Clutton and is one of nine gritting vehicles that will be operating this winter.

Pupils were shown how the gritter works, taught how spreading road salt makes roads safer for road users and were given safety information and tips, like which vehicle lights to look out for and how to avoid vehicle blind spots.

A spokesperson from the school said: “Thank you for bringing your snow plough to Cameley school. The children really enjoyed the extremely informative talk and learning how to keep themselves safe in winter near the roads.

“They will certainly remember “Be bright, be seen”, what a blind spot is and have all asked their grownups to check their tyres! They loved hearing the horn’s sound and the whole visit gave a general excited buzz around the school.”

Jerry Pert, Operations Director for VolkerHighways, said: “It’s vitally important that we engage with pupils from an early age, to give them a chance to see first-hand one of our gritters and learn how the gritters keep them safe during the winter months. We are pleased to hear that the pupils enjoyed the visit, and we look forward to continuing to engage with Cameley Primary School over the next few months.”

With winter approaching the council will soon be operating its winter service, and recently completed a dry run to test its gritters after their summer servicing in readiness for colder weather.