Travelling to school
Learn about our safe and active school travel programs, resources and events.
We are committed to improving safety around schools, encouraging healthy, sustainable travel and strengthening school communities. We support schools in Darebin with a package of programs and events including Octopus Schools, Ride2School Day and Ready to Roll.
Octopus Schools program 2026
Our Octopus Schools program promotes and facilitates safe and active travel to two or three Darebin schools. We work intensively with these schools to make travel to school healthy, active, sustainable and safe.
This year we've teamed up with Reservoir West Primary School, Sacred Heart Primary School Preston and Westgarth Primary School. In 2025-26 the focus was on St Mary's Primary School, Thornbury, and Preston South Primary School.
Octopus School activities include:
- Creating safe routes to school, including Legs the Octopus footpath decals and individualised school travel maps
- Student safe travel education including incursions
- Initiating regular school active travel days
- Travel surveys for students and parents
- Audits of local transport infrastructure, including parking
- Dr Cranky’s Bike Hospital pop-ups to prepare families for Ride2School Day – bikes are repaired, and reconditioned bikes are provided to those who need them.
Our Octopus Schools program is proudly supported by the Department of Transport and Planning's Community Road Safety Grants Program.
Ride2School Day 2026
Bicycle Network's annual Ride2School Day event took place on Friday 20 March this year. Over 400 Victorian schools joined this fun, Australia-wide celebration of riding, walking and scooting to school.
Darebin supported 19 local schools to highlight the benefits of healthy, sustainable travel. A total of 5600 students and their families took part. Participating schools received a kit of prizes and resources, plus the opportunity to win a fun smoothie bike package.
Riding with your child
Our 'Riding with your child' guide is the perfect starting point for parents who want to help their children start riding a bike. It contains tips on:
- getting the right bike for your child
- teaching them how to ride
- rules for riding on footpaths, shared paths and on the road.
Download Riding with your child FAQs and tips(PDF, 306KB)
Ready to Roll – Riding to Secondary School
Our popular Ready to Roll program supports Grade 6 students transitioning to Year 7 to improve their on-road bike riding skills. The program covers the following topics and meets the needs of students starting secondary school who may be riding their bike on the road for the first time:
- bike handling skills
- road and path rules
- communication with other road users
- defensive riding techniques
- safe journey planning.
Schools can express interest in the program now until Friday 4 September.
Learn more about the program by watching the Darebin's Ready to Roll video.
Our Ready to Roll program is proudly supported by the Department of Transport and Planning's Community Road Safety Grants Program.
More information
To find out more about Darebin's active travel to school initiatives please email safetravel@darebin.vic.gov.au.
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