Remembering the Tufty Club: where children learned road safety

Tufty Fluffytail, a childlike red squirrel character, was created in 1953 by Elsie Mills to introduce clear and simple safety messages to children.
The success of the character led to the creation in 1961 of the Tufty Club for children under five. Under its auspices more than 30,000 Tufty books about road safety were issued to parents.
At its peak there were nearly 25,000 branches of the Tufty Club throughout the UK, and by the early 1970s an estimated two million children were members.

The clubs were as popular in Cumbria as elsewhere and a picture shows members of the Warwick Square Playgroup Tufty Club alongside a cardboard cutout of the squirrel himself.

In another picture, taken in 1974, Carlisle mayor Tommy Johnston makes a presentation to the Tufty Club at Inglewood Infant School.

A different mayor was invited to mark the 5,000th membership of the Tufty Club, possibly in the whole of the UK.

And Santa was the special guest at Broughton Moor Tufty Club’s Christmas party.

Dalton Tufty Club organiser Stan Gill enlisted the squirrel’s help to appeal for new members, though its 36th annual Christmas party (pictured) looks well-attended.

The formation of the Tufty Club at Whitehaven’s Jericho School was a big event, with a Tufty play with specially made squirrel and badger outfits one of its first projects.

A special certificate marking the club’s inauguration was presented to the youngest pupil, four-year-old Tracey Whitehead, while the school’s entire 143 pupils were proud owners of new Tufty badges.

A testament to the club’s significance was the reunion held at Hindpool Community Centre, where centre manager Jenny English is shown receiving a bouquet from Michelle Fell (left) and Christine Wiper (right) as a thank you for letting them use the venue, where the Tufty Club used to meet.
Club members raised £680 for the centre through the event.