National accolade - Jeff the Road Safety Dog

​SAPOL's Jeff the Road Safety Dog has been announced as the winner of the Australian Road Safety Foundation (ARSF), State Government Programs Award for 2024.

This is the 13th year the ARSF has conducted the Awards. The ARSF is a not-for-profit organisation dedicated to reducing road fatalities and injuries. It achieves this through innovative road safety awareness programs, driver education, advocacy, and research assistance. In 2024, 59 applications were received across ten Award categories.

In 2018, the South Australia Police Road Safety Centre created a mascot - Jeff the Road Safety Dog to assist police to engage and expand their footprint with the community in the road safety space. The aim of this initiative was to provide pre and primary school students with key road safety education that would encourage safe behaviour whilst they are using the roads as a pedestrian, cyclist or as a passenger in a vehicle. Jeff the Road Safety Dog currently features in road safety videos specifically designed for pre and primary students who attend a road safety session presented by SAPOL's Road Safety Centre, on SAPOL's social media road safety content and at road safety and community events.

Since Jeff the Road Safety Dog was added to road safety sessions for pre and primary school students and the Road Safety Centre School Holiday Program, nearly 50,000 students have attended nearly 1,500 sessions delivered across the state. Each participant has received individual road safety promotional material featuring Jeff the Road Safety Dog. Since 2021, teachers attending these sessions have received a plush Jeff the Road Safety Dog to further engage with students post session regarding road safety.

This week Superintendent Darren Fielke, Officer in Charge, Traffic Servies Branch and Senior Sergeant Susan O'Connor, Program Coordinator of SAPOL's Road Safety Centre attended the award ceremony which was held at Parliament House, Canberra. "Jeff the Road Safety Dog provides our road safety educators with a unique opportunity to deliver vital road safety education to pre and primary school students from across the state in a fun and engaging way. It is an honour to accept this award on behalf of SAPOL's Road Safety Centre," Superintendent Fielke said.

This is the third national award won by SAPOL's Road Safety Centre. In 2020, they were the recipients of the ARSF State Government Programs Award for the SA Police Road Safety Centre School Holiday Program and in 2023, were awarded the Innovation Award for the South Australia Police Fatal Five True Stories Feature Podcasts.

Department for Infrastructure and Transport SA was selected as the winner of the Indigenous Programs Award for their On the Right Track program. This program assists Aboriginal people living in the APY and MT Lands to get and retain their driver's licence. SAPOL's Road Safety Centre co-presents road safety content with the On the Right Track team to Aboriginal communities in Far North and Eyre and Western LSA and we congratulate them on their award.

Please keep an eye on SAPOL's website and social media sites for further information regarding road safety sessions.