Primary school resources

Education about rail safety at Key Stages 1 and 2 (Scotland P1 to P6) provides safety awareness to young people in their early years.

We have worked closely with teachers and students to develop resources that will help you to run fun, interactive activities that match different curriculum areas and deliver Ofsted requirements of PSHE teaching.

We encourage you to use the resources below to raise awareness of electrification on the railway, level crossings and railway safety.

Electricity and the railway

Forty per cent of the network is electrified; this will grow by 25 per cent by 2020, and as new routes are electrified we need to educate young people about the increased danger.

Assembly presentation

Presentation – Electricity and the railway
162 MB

PowerPoint slideshow with embedded videos, a quiz about electricity around the railway for Key Stages 1 and 2 and accompanying teacher's guide.

When you unzip the folder, please save the videos and presentations in the same folder.

Lesson plan activities

Issues covered include the dangers of electricity around the railway, the history of the railway and how the railway will be electrified. Activities include a quiz, a writing exercise and exploring what’s involved in decision making. Accompanying student worksheets are available below.

If you haven't held the assembly on electricity and the railway, we recommend using the assembly presentation (and supporting teacher's guide) to introduce the lesson.

Lesson plan activities – primary school

KS1 and 2 – Lesson plan activities – Electricity and the railway
3 MB
KS1 – Worksheet 1 – Electricity hotspots
511 KB
KS1 – Worksheet 2 – Spot the hazard
155 KB
KS1 – Worksheet 3 – Signs of danger
110 KB
KS1 – Worksheet 4 – Power jump
112 KB
KS2 – Worksheet 1 – Railway history
647 KB
KS2 – Worksheet 2 – Maths quiz
71 KB
KS2 – Worksheet 3 – Whose choice?
217 KB
KS1 and 2 – Worksheet set
1 MB

Level crossings

With over 6,100 level crossings around Britain, it is important that young people understand how to use them safely.

PowerPoint slideshow with a video of our level crossings TV advert and an interactive quiz, for Key Stages 1 and 2.

We’ve also developed an accompanying guide to help make running the assembly as easy as possible.

Assembly presentation

Teacher’s guide to the assembly presentation
13 MB
Assembly presentation – Key Stages 1 and 2 (PowerPoint 97-2003)
13 MB
Assembly presentation – Key Stages 1 and 2 (PowerPoint 2007)
13 MB
Assembly presentation – Key Stages 1 and 2 (Apple Mac PowerPoint 97-2003)
13 MB

Lesson plan activities

These resources will help you run engaging classes across a number of curriculum areas and cover rail safety issues including level crossings, electrification, and trespass and vandalism.

Lesson plan activities – key 1-2

Lesson plan activities for Key Stages 1 and 2
5 MB

Further supporting materials

Further supporting materials

Rail life safety guide
4 MB
This handy guide gives key facts and essential rail safety information for young people and those working with them. You can use it for background information or hand out copies to pupils to aid research and discussion.
Live wire sticker
45 KB
You can use this file to create your own Live Wire stickers to hand out as part of your lesson.

TV advertisements

The following TV advertising campaigns were launched to highlight the dangers of level crossings.

New technology and equipment

Watch computer generated images of how a new train is used to electrify the railway.