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Youngsters urged to ThinkSafe at annual safety week

Tuesday 16th of March 2010

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Hundreds of school children will be taught how to ThinkSafe with a week of realistic safety scenarios.

Children will be given a lesson in the dangers of everything from fire to firearms and stray dogs to strangers.

The annual event, run from 22-26 March, will also see the launch of East Hampshire District Council's ThinkSafe DVD, a package of ten hard-hitting short films with accompanying notes and activities to help teachers drive home the message of safety. 

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Pupils will work through eight short scenarios, run by teams of experts from Hampshire Constabulary, Hampshire Fire and Rescue, South Central Ambulance Service, the RNLI and East Hampshire District Council.

The 15 minute scenarios are:

• The dangers of knives and imitation guns with Firearms And Knife Education (FAKE), run by the Hampshire Constabulary Tactical Firearms Team
• Fire safety in the home with Hampshire Fire and Rescue
• Personal safety with Hampshire Constabulary
• First Aid and medical advice with South Central Ambulance Service
• The dangers of military ranges with the Army
• Stray dogs with EHDC dog wardens
• Seaside and water safety with the RNLI
• Road safety with Hampshire County Council

ThinkSafe, held at Queen Elizabeth Country Park, seeks to give children the very best advice, straight from those who know best, to help keep them out of harm's way.

EHDC's professionally-made ThinkSafe DVD shows ten scenarios covering water safety, stranger danger, knife crime and gun crime and can be used across Key Stages 1-4. The films come with accompanying children's plans and teaching resources.

Mark Jewell, EHDC Health and Safety Officer, said: "We want to raise risk awareness and personal safety and we want to let children know that they can be safe while they're having fun.

"The children always love the Think Safe! event. They're learning something new, it's interactive and hands on and it is really true to life.

"This annual week is the perfect opportunity to launch our ThinkSafe DVD. The film really brings home the dangers of some everyday situations and how they should be dealt with by the young people involved.

"The FAKE (Firearms and Knife Education) team have been using it as part of their work and they say it has had a real impact on young people's behaviour."