Advice for Safer Driving

No, this isn't about changing gear properly, or how your hands should be positioned on the steering wheel. Looking at sites regarding the safety of woman drivers (including some breakdown service sites) I have compiled what I think is a very helpful yet uncomplicated article on keeping yourself safe when out driving alone. As you read through the list some of the suggestions might seem very obvious and very much common sense. That's what I found myself thinking as I read through them. However, I then reflected on my driving habits and had to admit that as obvious as they were I very rarely, if ever carried these safety procedures out. Maybe sometimes we all need a little nudge in the right direction.

So, here are the suggestions, we hope you find them helpful.

We all need to use petrol stations and often we are in a rush to get in and out as quickly as possible. It is surprising however how many of us put ourselves, our children and our property at risk just carrying out this simple task. The most important advice would be to make sure you take your key out of the ignition and lock the doors before you go to pay for your petrol. Leaving the doors unlocked can be an invitation to potential thieves to have a quick look in (especially if you have anything of potential value on display) and, worse case scenario, with the keys left in the ignition the theft might not just be of smaller items but the car itself. There have been reports of cars being stolen in this way with children in the back seat...remember thieves have no morals and sometimes even children in the car won’t stop them.

Many people don’t like to have their doors locked while they are driving. Unfortunately in this day and age it is advisable to do so. Attempts at car jacking or theft from cars while a driver is held up at junctions or traffic lights are on the increase. For this reason it is also advisable to make sure anything of potential value (handbags, purses, credit cards) are hidden well out of view.

Hopefully you will never be followed but if you are this is what you should do. Slow down, but DO- NOT stop. DO-NOT drive home, but drive to a well-lit place and sound your horn and flash your lights. This should get rid of the pest, but if not, drive on to a police station or find a police officer. A Service Station is always a good place to go. Many have phones so you can ring the police for help, or ask the attendant to do it for you.
If you are forced to stop. Lock all doors and close all windows. DO-NOT get out of the car. DO-NOT try and ram the other car, this may prevent your escape. Stop with the wheels turned outwards ready to drive off. Try and remain calm and confident and drive away as soon as you can. (i.e. if the driver of the other car gets out of his vehicle.)

If you breakdown it is of course ideal to have a mobile phone with you but, if you don’t, walk to the nearest phone do not accept a lift. When you speak to the operator (in either scenario) explain you are a lone female and this will make your call a priority. Once you have made the call get back into your car but sit in the passenger seat. To anyone passing by this will give the impression that there is someone else with you as obviously there would be a driver. People driving past won’t be able to see in properly and will assume the driver is in the car, people who walk past will assume the driver is nearby making a phone call etc and could return at any time. Again it is essential to keep your doors locked and windows closed until help arrives. When help does arrive remember to check identification BEFORE opening doors or windows Many of us are with the larger breakdown companies who will have their I.D visible but for those of you who call for general assistance need to be especially vigilant about this issue.

When parking don't leave items on view. Always park in a well lit busy area. If parking in a car park, park close to the exits or near to the attendant. Reverse into the parking space so you can get away quickly. Always lock your doors and find a landmark so you can find your car when you come back. If possible return to your car with others. Approach your car with your keys ready in your hand. Check your car for intruders. Once in your car lock the doors before you drive away.

There are many organisations that offer advice in the form of booklets and leaflets on all aspects of driving, including the safety of lone drivers. Below is just one example of many out there.

A free leaflet that has been revised and re issued by GEM Motoring Assist (GEM) with a new focus on the worries of lone women and a clear and precise pictorial guide to the new and sometimes confusing legislation on child safety seats. To obtain a free copy of Personal Safety on the Road you can write to GEM Motoring Assist, Station Road, Forest Row, East Sussex, RH18 5EN or call 01342 825676 or email info@motoringassist.com
This feature is not set out to worry anyone or suddenly make you fearful of driving on your own. However, we have to be aware of dangers and risks that are around us every day. Following the simple advice above will prevent you becoming a victim of what is mostly opportunist rather than premeditated crime.

End of an Era ?

Is this the end of an era, or a sign that times are indeed changing ?

Women's studies, which came to prominence in the wake of the 1960s feminist movement, is to disappear from British universities as an undergraduate degree this summer. Lack of interest in the subject means that the final 12 students will graduate with a BA in women's studies from London's Metropolitan University in July.

Universities offering the course, devised as the second wave of the women's rights movement peaked, attracted students in their hundreds during the late 1980s and early 1990s, but the mood on campuses has changed. Students, it seems, no longer want to immerse themselves in the sisterhood's struggle for equality or the finer points of feminist history.

The disappearance of a course that women academics fought so long and hard to have taught in universities has divided opinion on what this means for feminism. Is it irrelevant in today's world or has the quest for equality hit the mainstream?

The course's critics argue that women's studies became its own worst enemy, remaining trapped in the feminist movement of the 1970s while women and society moved on.
"Feminist scholarship has become predictable, tiresome and dreary, and most young women avoid it like the plague," said Christina Hoff Sommers, resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute for public policy research in Washington and author of Who Stole Feminism? "British and American societies are no longer patriarchal and oppressive 'male hegemonies'. But most women's studies departments are predicated on the assumption that women in the West are under siege. What nonsense."

Others believe young women have shied away from studying feminist theory because they would rather opt for degrees that more obviously lead to jobs, especially since the introduction of tuition fees. "Taking women's studies as a separate course may not feel as relevant to women who go to university to help them enter the job market," said Jean Edelstein, an author and journalist. "As the feminist movement has become increasingly associated with extreme thoughts, women who may have previously been interested in women's studies may be deterred by these overtones."

Anyone ruing the degree's demise can take heart: many gender and equality issues are now dealt with by mainstream courses, from sociology and law to history and English. And many universities, including Oxford, still offer the course to postgraduates.

Mary Evans, visiting fellow at the Gender Institute at the London School of Economics, said: "This final closure does not signal the end of an era: feminist ideas and literature are as lively as ever, but the institutional framework in which they are taught has changed."
Ms Edelstein added: "Feminist critique should be studied by everyone. If integration into more mainstream courses means more people looking at gender theory and increases the number of people who are aware of the issues, then that is a good thing."
But Dr Irene Gedalof, who has led the London Metropolitan University women's studies course for the past 10 years, defended the discipline.

"The women's movement is less visible now and many of its gains are taken for granted, which fuels the perception there is no longer a need for women's studies. But while other disciplines now 'deal' with gender issues we still need a dedicated focus by academics. Despite the gains women have made, this is just as relevant in today's world," she said, blaming the course's downfall on universities' collective failure to promote the discipline.