Issue 60, March 2013 - Safekids

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MESSAGE FROM THE DIRECTOR ‘Bottom line: We need to do more for children’ In this edition of Safekids News we have some exciting updates regarding child injury prevention in New Zealand. Housing New Zealand, the country’s largest residential property owner, is running a multi-million dollar fencing and landscaping initiative in response to collaborative work with Safekids. This move will help address environmental factors that lead to driveway run over injuries (page 3). On product safety, the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment has taken the huge step of banning high powered magnetic toy sets (page 4) that are reported to have killed and injured a number of children around the world. And late last year, the Ministry of Transport announced that it is extending the mandatory age on the use of child restraints. The NZ Transport Agency is asking for comments before making the changes final. Download our submission and use it as your template to comment on the draft amendment (page 5). It has been a great start to the year. However, borrowing a phrase from Children’s Commissioner Dr Russell Wills article “Poverty stopping our children from being ‘safe kids’” (page 11): The bottom line is we need to do more for children. Almost two children die from an unintentional injury every week, and every day an average classroom full of children are injured severely enough to be admitted to hospital. With children’s lives at stake, it is up to the government, agencies, communities and each one of us to work together and act now. Evidence demonstrates the dramatic successes in child injury prevention in countries which have made a concerted effort. By working together, coupled with increasing investments in human resources and institutional capacities, this will lead to the development, implementation and evaluation of programmes that will stem the tide of child injury, and enhance the health and wellbeing of children and their families throughout New Zealand. We look forward to continuing working with you, our partners to achieve these goals. Sincerely, Ann Weaver Director, Safekids New Zealand 2011/12 Driveway Run Over Campaign Report now available The Safekids Campaign annual report on driveway run over injuries is now available. The report features information and highlights from the campaign, including a brief summary about driveway run over injuries in New Zealand, the goals, safety messages and strategies of the Safekids Campaign. The report also details results from the Safekids Information & Planning Day workshop series, resources used during the campaign, media highlights, community events and feedback from injury prevention practitioners and families. Visit our website to download this report: http://www.safekids.org.nz/index.php/page/Position_Papers Cover: Safekids at Te Matatini 2013 Photo Credit: Tina Ngata of Te Wananga o Aotearoa. After 40 years of loyal service, fire safety champion and child injury prevention advocate George Stephens is retiring from his role with the NZ Fire Service. George is one of our most valued partners. While his role focused on fire safety, Safekids always had his full support on all issues that concerned child safety. Best wishes for an awesome retirement George! Safekids News is Safekids NZ’s quarterly publication. For enquiries, contact the editor at anthony.rola@adhb.govt.nz. Safekids News encourages discussion within the injury prevention community. Opinion articles or articles with bylines reflect the views of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Safekids New Zealand About Safekids New Zealand Safekids New Zealand is the injury prevention service of Starship Children’s Health and a member of Safe Kids Worldwide. Our mission is to reduce the incidence and severity of unintentional injuries to children in New Zealand aged 0 - 14 years. Safekids NZ Team Ann Weaver, Director Anthony Rola, Marketing and Communications Gervaise Ledger, Team Support Joanna Milne, PA to the Director Moses Alatini, Policy Analyst Patricia Bolton, Policy Analyst Simone Randle, Injury Prevention Advisor Victoria Jarvis, Coalition Coordinator Wayne Carter, Information Specialist Make a difference Safekids New Zealand encourages the involvement of government, community, industry, decision makers and families in child safety. If you would like to know more about us, wish to advocate on behalf of children in your community, or partner in a programme with us, contact us at: Safekids New Zealand PO Box 26488, Epsom, Auckland 1344 New Zealand. Telephone: +64-9 630 9955 Fax: +64-9-630 9961 www.safekids.org.nz WE ARE MOVING! The Safekids New Zealand office and Information & Resource Centre is moving to a new location soon. If you are planning to visit us or send courier items, please email joanna.milne @adhb.govt.nz or call 09 630 9955. 2 Safekids News: March 2013 Issue No 60
INJURY PREVENTION NEWS HOUSING NZ, SAFEKIDS DRIVEWAY CAMPAIGN TARGETS 12,759 HOMES The sound of hammers rings out on Bairds Rd. Mele and Teremoana Rima of Otara watch with transparent delight as a strapping team of Housing NZ contractors build a fence separating their driveway from their home and yard. Home safe as. Mele and Teremoana Rima with grandson Malachi are delighted to see a fence going up to separate their driveway from their home and yard. Photo credit: Herald on Sunday Last month, the state housing agency began a multimillion dollar fencing and landscaping programme at thousands of properties with children, after figures revealing the familiar New Zealand post-war bungalow with a big lawn and a long driveway down the side – a Kiwiana icon – poses one of the greatest risks to small children of being run over by a reversing car. The Rimas are among the first to benefit. The middle-aged couple have nine grandchildren. One, 15-month-old Malachi, lives with them. And their three-bedroom, standalone house with a driveway running down to the garage at the back has been identified as one of those posing a high risk. This morning, Malachi and his cousins will have a safe play area. “For me safety comes first, with my children and now my mokopuna (grand children),” Mele says. The couple look forward to spending the rest of summer outside in the sun with their grandchildren. House and driveway design is fatally flawed. As a nation we have an appalling record, with one of the highest rates of child driveway deaths in the OECD. Traditional long driveways, with a garage tucked up next to the house, shared driveways and unfenced drives that double as a play-space are the biggest killers. Summer months, around midday and dinner time, are high-risk times. Children are outside more and busy parents are coming and going. Bigger households, with multiple or extended families under one roof are also hit hard. Tenants in state housing are over represented in driveway injuries. Sean Bignell, Housing NZ General Manager of Asset Development says that will change. “Our focus is on providing a fenced and secure play area away from driveways in family homes,” she says. “As part of this programme, we will install (Safekids’) driveway safety stickers to all assessed properties as well as installing driveway signage and speed restriction signs for shared driveways.” The company hopes to complete the first group of houses by June and is assessing the other 12,759 properties that have tenants with children 5 years or younger. This article is an excerpt from a 2-page feature in the Herald on Sunday on 24 February 2013, pages12-13 (“Surviving our driveways: Changes that can save children’s lives“ by Kirsty Wynn). To read the complete article, visit: http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/ article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10868381 Addressing the 3 risk factors on run overs Safekids New Zealand has been working with Housing New Zealand to address risk factors associated with driveway run over injuries. Safekids’ position paper Child Driveway Run Over Injuries (2011) presents evidence that suggests it is possible to reduce the frequency of run overs by focusing on three dominating factors: • Human Factors: General lack of awareness among adults of the risk and impact of driveway run over injuries to children. • Vehicle Design: Lack of driver visibility from within vehicles, both rearward and forward. • Property Design (Built Environment): Environmental design can influence driveway injury risk levels. You can download this position paper at: www.safekids.org.nz/index.php/page/ Driveway_Runover 3 Safekids News: March 2013 Issue No 60
Page 1: BCG2-H GNZ2370 Bike Safety A4 Poste
Page 5 and 6: ADVOCACY MATTERS NZTA: Proposed chi
Page 7 and 8: THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL: New School Comp
Page 9 and 10: THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL: Community event
Page 11 and 12: SAFEKIDS PARTNERS From the Office o

Issue 60, March 2013 - Safekids

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