CHILDREN in the district were hit by vehicles several times in four years, analysis of official figures has revealed.

Campaigners say more should be done to educate youngsters about road safety after thousands of child pedestrians across Great Britain were hurt or killed in incidents between 2017 and 2020.

Analysis of Department for Transport figures by insurance company Churchill reveals during that period, six children were hit by a vehicle in Maldon.

Of them, one was seriously injured.

The primary school aged pupils were among the 36 pedestrian casualties recorded by the DfT in 2017-20.

Churchill's analysis found no incidents in Maldon involving a casualty aged between four and 11 happened in a 20mph zone, while none were within 500 metres of a school.

The figures also show that four children were hit during school 'rush hours', either between 7.30am and 8.30am or between 3.30pm and 4.30pm.

According to the analysis of more than 600,000 accidents by Churchill, 10,100 primary aged children have been hit by vehicles in the UK since 2017 – around seven a day.

More than 2,900 accidents have happened during school pick-up and drop off times.