Rail safety education will become mandatory in the PSHE curriculum for all pupils in England from September 2026. Ahead of the change, Network Rail has relaunched its Switched On website, offering enhanced, age-appropriate teaching materials designed to help children understand how to stay safe around the railway. The initiative aims to reduce the number of safety incidents involving young people and support schools as they prepare for the new curriculum requirement.
The updated Switched On platform provides free, curriculum-linked resources for teachers and features targeted content for pupils aged 3 to 16. For early years learners, the ‘Switched On Travels with Suzi’ programme introduces railway safety through animations, quizzes and new activities built around Suzi and her mum’s day out to a nature reserve.
Resources for pupils aged 7 to 11 focus on developing good judgement and decision-making, helping children spot hazards and recognise unsafe behaviours. New materials include activities inspired by the ‘Arlo’s Adventures’ book series, poster design tasks and card-based games that teach hazard recognition at stations, near tracks and at level crossings.
For secondary school students aged 12 to 16, Network Rail has collaborated with science creator Big Manny to explore the risks of unsafe behaviour around the railway. His videos explain the science behind railway dangers, while lesson materials encourage debate on peer pressure and the influence of social media trends that encourage risky behaviour.
Priti Patel, Chief Health, Safety & Wellbeing Officer at Network Rail, said:
“We have always believed that it is essential to educate children about rail safety, which is why we, alongside our rail industry partners, have an extensive schools’ engagement programme in place. I’m delighted to know that when rail safety becomes a mandatory part of the English national curriculum next year, we are one step closer to our desire to ensure that every child is taught how to keep themselves safe when in a rail setting.
The Switched On website is a great one-stop shop that provides useful tools for schoolchildren – from videos and interactive games to classroom activities and teacher guidance – all free of charge. I am sure that it is a welcome resource for teachers that will enable them to deliver effective rail safety education to children of all ages.”
Developed by Hopscotch Consulting, now part of We Communications, the enhanced platform builds on the original 2021 version, which has already delivered rail safety education to hundreds of thousands of pupils. All materials are available free of charge, including on-demand videos that fit easily into school timetables.
Parents and carers are also able to make to use of this free educational programme by visiting the Switched On website.
