The Star: March 03, 2022

Thursday March 3 2022 The Star
CHRISTCHURCH students
don’t just carry the burden
of learning, several are also
weighed down by the stresses of
carrying educational tools to and
from class.
School bag-related back
injuries can follow a child
through the system with
Accident Compensation
Corporation statistics revealing
some cases are still requiring
treatment over several
years.
Canterbury ranks third
nationwide regarding school
bag-related back injuries with
118 claims for students aged
5-18 made from January 1, 2017
to December 31, 2021, behind
Auckland (527) and Waikato
(149).
There are 112 active claims in
Canterbury that have required
$26,407 worth of treatment.
ACC does not offer specific
advice to schools for avoiding
school bag-related injuries, but
injury prevention leader James
Whitaker suggested parents
drip-feed items children take to
school so they’re not all taken the
same day.
Only pack what is needed and
check for any items that can be
removed. Parents are also urged
to test a range of bags before
settling on a model that spreads
weight evenly.
The Ministry of Education
recommends backpacks should
be no wider than the wearer’s
Latest Canterbury news at starnews.co.nz
Free Wi-Fi coming to the central city
COMMUNITY-owned fibre
broadband provider Enable
approached the city council
last year about partnering
with it to roll out free Wi-Fi at
access points within the central
business district.
Free public Wi-Fi is already
available at libraries, some
city council facilities and open
public spaces. This will broaden
the coverage.
The service is intended to be
available to the public from June
30, once testing is complete.
City council chief executive
Dawn Baxendale said: “We
saw this as a great opportunity
for the city and really
appreciate the social good
that Enable will help
achieve for our residents.
“Having an efficient,
reliable and fast public
Wi-Fi network is a
fundamental step in
further promoting
Ōtautahi-Christchurch
as an innovative and
progressive city.”
According to the 2020-21
digital inclusion action plan
Dawn
Baxendale
by the Department of Internal
Affairs, it is estimated that
one-in-five people in
New Zealand lack at least
one of the four elements
needed to be digitally
included – motivation,
access, skills or trust.
Enable chief executive
Johnathan Eele said the
company wanted to help
make high quality Wi-Fi
access available for all.
“Enable is committed
to maximising its fibre
infrastructure to deliver
The burden of school bags:
Back issues can be ongoing
INJURY: Heavy school bags can cause ongoing back issues, ACC statistics show.
chest, the straps should be
shorted until the bottom of the
bag is just above the child’s waist,
and not sitting on their buttocks.
Wide, padded shoulder straps
help distribute weight evenly,
financial and social returns to
our community and support the
realisation of new possibilities
across our city.”
Mr Eele said free Wi-Fi will
bring significant social and
economic benefits for the city.
To deliver Christchurch Free
Wi-Fi, Enable is installing
equipment on existing city
council street infrastructure
such as traffic lights and
streetlights. Enable’s fibre
network will connect the access
points to the city council’s
internet service.
PHOTO: GETTY
while a hip or chest belt can
relieve some of the strain off a
child’s neck or shoulders.
The heaviest items should be at
the base of the bag, closest to the
child’s back.
NEWS 3
in brief
The Star readership
continues to grow
THe latest Nielsen readership
results show The Star
readership is up by an extra
8000 readers every week, a nine
per cent increase in readership
since previous results*. Said
Star Media regional manager
Steve McCaughan: “It is clear
that The Star news team
produces content that resonates
and connects with local
readers. I am very proud of
this result, local news matters
and we will aim to continue to
excite, inform and surprise our
readers every issue.”
•Nielsen readership survey-
CMI Q1 21-Q4 21 vs CMI Q1
20-Q4 20
Alleged burglars
crash into police car
Two men have been charged
after allegedly crashing into
a police car and pointing a
gun at an officer following
a burglary at an Addington
property about 2am on
Wednesday. The alleged
burglars – a 37-year-old and
24-year-old – left the scene in a
stolen vehicle, before crashing
into a police car on Fitzgerald
Ave. The officer involved in
the crash was not injured, a
police spokesperson said. The
men were due to appear in the
district court yesterday.
Cat’s death revealed
The mystery around the death
of a beloved cat from Darfield
has been solved. His family
had suspected the pedigree
ragdoll had been brutally
killed when they found him
outside their home in January,
as one of his injuries appeared
as a cut from his throat to his
stomach. However, a police
spokesperson told The Star
yesterday a truck driver had
come forward to confirm they
hit the pedigree ragdoll and
moved it off the road. “The
driver described the injuries
and there is nothing to suggest
that their statement is not
accurate. Our sympathies go to
the family who lost their pet.”
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