Road Safety Education

DriveSKILLS Programme for Young Drivers

Where:	Civil Defence Room, Upper Hutt City Council
When:	Friday 25 May Saturday 26 May  Sunday 27 May	4pm Hour long session from 9am Hour long session from 9am

                   
Want to know if you are ready to sit the next phase of your driver licence? This programme consists of
 three sessions.  The Friday session is for non-licence holders who want to get their Learners Licence.
 
On Saturday, Learner Licence drivers are assessed to see if they areready to progress to the next stage.
On Sunday, Restricted Licence holders are assessed to see if they are ready to progress to a Full Licence.
Numbers are limited so bookings are essential. Register your for the sessions now by emailing
community@uhcc.govt.nz

If you would like to know more about DriveSKILLS, you can check out past events below, contact us
or email joanne.kinnaird@uhcc.govt.nz

   

Past events

18 and 19th June Progressing to the next phase of you Learner or Restricted Licence This DriveSKILLS  programme was open to Learner and Restricted driver’s licence holders, aged between 15 to 25 years old, who wanted to take the next step towards a FULL Licence. A two hour information session was held where each individuals driving skill was assessed by a qualified driving instructor. Participants were then advised on their driving skills and abilities, and what steps to take to progress to the next phase of their licence. This course was free and was held at the Upper Hutt City Council Building Defence (Level One Meeting Room).

July 2011 Upper Hutt young drivers better equipped for the roads | From 5 to 9 July 2010, sixty Upper Hutt teenagers spent part of their school holidays upskilling themselves when it comes to getting behind the wheel. Youth DriveSkills Upper Hutt is a joint project between Upper Hutt Police, Upper Hutt City Council and VTNZ and has been run for the first time.   Upper Hutt Police Youth Education Officer Senior Constable Kerry Fenton says the idea for the course came last year after numerous conversations with young people revealed barriers to graduating through the driver licencing system. Senior constable Fenton said "Youth were telling us the barriers included the cost of the licences, the cost of driving lessons and the fact that  there wasn't anyone to teach them correct driving techniques."   60 students took the opportunity to undertake practical driving lessons under the watchful eyes  of New Zealand Police College driving instructors, as well as learning basic road safety skills. As part of VTNZ's commitment to the project, 15 students will have their licences paid for either a Learner's, Restricted or Full licence. The support from MAF for allowing the use of the Wallaceville Animal Research Centre was also integral to the programme's success as students were able to practice with the driver trainer's on their closed roading network.   Upper Hutt City Council Road Safety Coordinator Joanne Kinnaird says the course is a win-win for the community. "Twenty three per cent of crashes in Upper Hutt are caused by people on a Restricted licence so we're doing our bit to encourage young drivers to graduate through the driver licencing system." Joanne says it's admirable that these 60 young people have attended the course off their own bat and we're really proud of the hard work and commitment they've demonstrated this week. "The students have told us that the course was really valuable and has given them more confidence with their driving. They also said the course made them more aware about hazards on the road, such as texting while driving."   Senior Constable Kerry Fenton says they're looking at all options to make the Youth DriveSkills Upper Hutt sustainable into the future.

    

Why get a Licence?
Because you are breaking the law if you are driving without one, and there are insurance issues if you have a crash. You also can't drive a company vehicle if you don't have a licence.

Why go through from Restricted to Full licence?
Because there is are no restrictions or conditions on full licence holders. Basically you can drive when you want where you want without a curfew or having a person with a full licence with you.

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