HSE WINNERS AWARDED BY STAR OF CHILDREN'S BBC

HSE press release E118:03 - 1 July 2003

Children's BBC star Mark Speight today presented awards to the winners of the Health and Safety Executive's (HSE) children's farm safety poster competition.

Part of HSE's ongoing child safety campaign, the competition was open to children in rural primary schools throughout England. Pupils were encouraged to design a poster highlighting the dangers that they may face on a farm.

The competition attracted thousands of entries and the judges were overwhelmed by the quality and the amount of work that had gone into all of the posters.

Mark Speight said: "This competition is an excellent idea. Not only has it inspired children to produce some brilliant artistic posters but it has also helped them to learn that farms can be dangerous places and that they need to be aware and stay safe."

The winning entry in the four to seven year old age category was Holly Backhurst of Wyke Primary School, Normandy, Surrey who designed an excellent poster underlining the importance of washing your hands when on the farm. The overall winner in the eight to eleven age category was Phoebe Stone of Burrowbridge Primary School, Taunton who produced a poster which highlighted several important farm safety messages.

The six winners of the competition were awarded their prizes in a ceremony in the HSE child safety marquee at the Royal Agricultural Show, Stoneleigh, Kenilworth. Prizes included computers kindly donated by Farm Business Magazine, book tokens and personal prizes for all of the winning children.

Linda Williams, HM Chief Inspector of Agriculture said: "Children are tragically killed and injured on farms every year and this is of great concern to the Health and Safety Executive. The poster competition has been introduced to help educate and inform children of the dangers that exist on the farm and to help them to realise that farms are not playgrounds.

"This is the third year of the competition and it seems to be going from strength to strength. We have been inundated with entries and the standard of all the posters has been fantastic. We feel that the competition is fulfilling its aim of raising awareness of the importance of farm safety to children as well as also highlighting safety issues within rural communities."

Other campaign initiatives include a new agricultural child safety video called 'Safe! - helping children to stay safe on farms' which has been produced to teach children about the dangers farms hold. The video follows Tanya, Josh and Alex around a farm as they point out all the hazards and explain how simple things can cause accidents. The video is aimed at a primary school audience has also been supported by the launch of a revised version of Stay Safe on the farm. There is also an advertising campaign in the farming press running throughout the school summer holidays.

Notes to editors

Child deaths since 1992 revealed:

• Forty two children (under 16 years of age) have been killed in the past ten years. Three of them were classed as employees and 39 as members of the public.
• Being struck by a moving vehicle was the main cause of death to children accounting for 15 deaths (38% of the child fatalities). Other major causes include asphyxiation or drowning (nine deaths - 23%) and contact with moving machinery (four deaths - 10%).
• Of the 39 child deaths, those aged between one and five years were most at risk. Twenty children (51%) fell into this age group. Ten children were aged between six and ten years and the remaining nine children were aged between 11 and 15 years.

The winners

Four years old to Seven years old

First prize winner: Holly Backhurst, five years old, Wyke Primary School, Normandy, Surrey
Second prize winner: Miles Armstrong, five years old, Ingleton C.E Primary School, Darlington, Co Durham
Third prize winner: Louise Hartley, six years old, Captain Shaw's Primary School, Bootle, Nr Millom, Cumbria

Eight years old to Eleven years old

First prize winner: Phoebe Stone, eight years old, Burrowbridge Primary School, Taunton
Second prize winner: Fiona Harrison, ten years old, Plumpton School, Plumpton, Penrith, Carlisle
Third prize winner: Stephie Brewin, eleven years old, Easton Royal School. Pewsey, Wiltshire.

Press enquiries

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