A pilot event run by community safety agencies will this month give hundreds of Tasman schoolchildren confidence and life skills in order to help them stay safe in a range of real-life scenarios.
From October 17-21, 450 year 5 and 6 children from Appleby, Wakefield, Ranzau, Hope, Brightwater and Richmond schools will take part in Clued Up Kids, a multi-agency pilot programme modelled on an award-winning initiative that has run in Marlborough for the past 10 years.
In the first five years of Marlborough’s event – between 2006 and 2011 – medical treatment claims for injuries to Marlborough youth aged 10-18 dropped by 42.3 per cent. That compared with a national reduction of 3.4 per cent.
The programme has won several awards, including the ACC Community Injury Prevention Award, and the Nelson Marlborough District Health Board Health Quality and Innovation Award for a quality healthy community initiative.
Tasman District Council road safety co-ordinator Krista Hobday says f the pilot was successful here, agencies would hope to see a similar reduction in injuries to young people over time.
ACC figures show in the year from July 2015, 1679 Tasman children between the ages of 5 and 14 lodged claims for injuries. Of these, 834 were in the home, 426 were at a place of recreation or sports, 244 were at school and 37 were on a road.
“By getting a group of different agencies together to teach children practical safety skills we hope to give them the tools to keep themselves safe in a variety of real-life situations,” Krista says.
“For example, there will be a ‘shaky house’ for practising what to do in an earthquake, a fire simulation to teach children how to react during a house fire, as well as a range of demonstrations and activities relating to water safety, interacting with dogs, road safety and first aid.”
The event will be more than a one-off session for the children, Krista said. Schools will receive information and supporting work beforehand, and there will be ongoing work to reach the wider community after the event concludes.
The major supporter of the pilot programme is ACC, in partnership with Nelson Marlborough District Health Board, Nelson Bays Primary Health, Tasman District Council, Rotary, NZ Fire Service, NZ Red Cross, NZ Police, Nelson Tasman Civil Defence and Emergency Management, Benge and Co, Neltech Communications and Farm Skills.
