The survey said older children are most at risk

The study, from the AA Motoring Trust, said that boys of 11 and 12 years old are most at risk of becoming the victim of an accident.

It highlights the increased freedom that children experience in the first term of secondary school as a major reason for increased vulnerability.

The study also found that children from low-income families are five times more likely to be killed on the roads than a child from a high-income family.

The way that child deaths increase as they get older should be especially sobering to parents Neil Greig AA Motoring Trust

Neil Greig, head of motoring policy in Scotland for the trust, said: "Parents need to know when their children are at risk, and that the dangers change as they grow.

"Just because a child is old enough to go to secondary school doesn't mean that they are safe to go out on their own without strict coaching on the dangers of their journey.

"The way that child deaths increase as they get older should be especially sobering to parents who traditionally believe that children are most at risk the younger they are - the reverse is true."

The study found that the group least at risk are those children under five years, because of the use parents make of child safety seats.

Other younger children between five and 10 years old are also relatively safer due to the protection of parents who accompany them on the school run.

Government target

Once the "most at risk" period of 11 and 12 years old passes, children are found to become more "streetwise".

But the report said new dangers emerge at 15, especially for girls, who are most at risk of being killed in a car being driven by young males showing off at the wheel.

Statistically, a 15-year-old girl is three times more likely to be killed in a car as a 13-year-old.

About 540 children under the age of 16 in Scotland are the casualties of road accidents every year.