A HEREFORD road safety group has held a week of workshops for youngsters in the county, giving them the chance to get behind the wheel and learn about becoming safe drivers.

The ELY Memorial Fund – set up in memory of Emma Louise Young who was killed in a collision in September 2010, is running a "Young Driver Experience" course for 14- to 17-year-olds in Herefordshire.

The course consists of two hours of driving accompanied by a variety of workshops including basic car maintenance delivered by the car mechanics department, basic roadside first aid delivered by Hereford First Aid and a demonstration of the effects of drink and drugs by Hereford police.

Angela Tyler, who set up the ELY Memorial Fund, said: "It takes a split second to change someone's life forever when you are driving.

"There is nothing that can prepare you for the news that a loved one has been involved in a fatal car accident.

"We need to get people to appreciate how dangerous the roads can be, at an early age."

Mrs Tyler hopes the courses can help promote road safety in the county's schools and colleges and give kids the chance to become safer drivers.

She said: "We hope that by teaching the county's youngsters, we can bring up a generation of drivers better equipped to drive safely and this will hopefully encourage their older siblings and parents as well."