Safer strangers, safer buildings

Greater Manchester Police (GMP) is helping to launch a new scheme that aims to help children if they get lost of feel unsafe.

The ‘safer strangers, safer buildings’ campaign will be launched at the House of Commons today (Wednesday 7 May) and will offer guidance and support to help youngsters aged between three and eight to recognise safe adults to approach and, equally importantly, which buildings to go into for help.

The initiative is designed for children who get lost or feel unsafe. It gives youngsters commonsense guidance and support, to help them recognise safe adults to approach and, equally importantly, the kinds of buildings to go into to ask for help.

The campaign will feature a film, with GMP officers, produced by children’s documentary experts Childs Eye Media, that will help the very young to understand the straightforward message of the campaign. The film was shot with officers from Greater Manchester Police and features PC Helena Hodgson, exploring the initiative with a group of children at a local school. It has already been piloted in the North West and backed by charities in the field of child safety.

PC Helena Hodgson said: “This new campaign has been presented in a way that captivates young children and, most importantly, teaches them what to do in emergency situations and how to stay safe. The information is provided in a positive way so that it does not frighten the child and the end result is that the child feels more able to deal with varied situations.”

John Leech MP will launch the campaign and speakers will include Liam McGurrin from the Children’s Safety Education Foundation, Steven Gauge from the Suzy Lamplugh Trust, Kidscape’s Michelle Elliot and ‘Toxic Childhood’ author Sue Palmer.

Date article online: 07/05/2008