Pupils learn to "Bee Safe"

A total of 21 primary schools took part with 510 pupils attending either a morning or afternoon session.

This event was funded by Cookstown Community Safety Partnership in conjunction with Cookstown District Policing Partnership, PSNI, Cookstown District Council and the Public Health Agency .

Bee Safe is a multi-agency community safety initiative specifically aimed at the primary-7 age group. This event aims to promote safety and develop community awareness, preparing pupils for the transition to secondary level education.

Participation at Bee Safe events allowed pupils to;

• become more aware of personal and home safety,

• learn how to react to dangerous situations,

• make a contribution to crime prevention,

• avoid becoming the victims of crime,

• understand the role of emergency services,

• how to be a good citizen

Scenarios at the Bee Safe event were delivered by partners from various organisations including;

• Trampoline Safety (Home Accident Prevention Group)

• Fire Safety (Northern Ireland Fire & Rescue Service)

• Internet Safety (Police Service of Northern Ireland)

• Overhead lines and underground cable safety (Northern Ireland Electricity)

• Bus Safety (Translink)

• Personal Safety (Women’s Aid)

• First Aid (St John’s Ambulance)

The Bee Safe event was a great success; enjoyed by both teachers and pupils. This event is held annually for Primary 7’s across the district; helping to reinforce important messages and improve the overall safety of children in our community.

In addition to participating in each of the inter-active presentations, the children are given Information Packs to take home which it is hoped will reinforce the message and remind them of how important it is to ‘Bee Safe’!

Cookstown Home Accident Prevention Group would like to thank all the organisations that took part in the event for their commitment and support. They would also like to thank those who provided much needed funding, the group leaders and Cookstown Leisure Centre staff for all their help and assistance over the four days.

For further information on this or other Home Safety events, please contact Home Accident Prevention Officer, at Cookstown District Council on 028 8676 2205.