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Academic receives international recognition for road safety efforts
Dr Fiona Fylan is part of the United Kingdom Road Offender Education (UKROEd) team, who are the winners of the 2021 Prince Michael International Road Safety award.
She leads a team of academics who design the police National Driver Reoffender Retraining Scheme, which is delivered by UKROEd nationwide.
The quick work of Dr Fylan and her team to develop online courses last year in response to restrictions caused by the pandemic was commended by judges in their recommendations as crucial in helping to ease pressure on an overburdened court system.
In just over 12 months, 1.3 million drivers have now taken an online course, offering an education-focused alternative to license points.
Dr Fylan, Reader at the School of Built Environment, Engineering and Computing, said: “This award is recognition of the hard work of the UKROEd team as we dealt with the unique circumstances of the pandemic.
“We now have a viable online alternative that can be used post-pandemic, and that will help to ensure that more drivers are receiving a high-quality educational support as opposed to licence points.”
Despite an estimated 80% decrease in road traffic after the initial announcement of lockdown, over 1.4 million speeding offences were still handed out in the first half of 2020, highlighting the need for an effective and safe education system.
HRH Prince Michael of Kent said: “What impressed me was not just the speed at which you were able to develop these i-courses, but the organisational ability to deploy them so quickly and to such beneficial effect.
“I therefore have no doubt that the team responsible deserve my International Road Safety Award.”
UKROEd CEO Ruth Purdie OBE said: “Dr Fylan and her team responded superbly in evaluating the current course design and ensuring that we were able to respond quickly and professionally to an online environment.
“This enabled those involved across the scheme to work together collaboratively to implement the changes. This award is recognition of that excellent work.”
To find out more about the work of the School of Built Environment, Engineering and Computing, click here.