- Council provides funds to help small businesses
- Financial help for keeping warm this winter
- Improve your health at York House
- Heathrow's airtrack train plan criticised
- Have your own say on Academies
- Mayor's Christmas invite
- Net closing on Council Tax cheats
- Step pedal jump your way to rugby!
- Borough has the lowest level of alcohol fueled crimes in London
- Play safe at Halloween warning
- Enjoy a week of entertainment at Heathfield centre
- Spreading the safety message
- New funding agreed to combat the recession
- Support your local lollipop person
- Disappointment as Boris' public transport costs rise
- Ham and Petersham win £100,000 for low carbon zone
- Borough children's favourite nursery rhyme revealed on Bookstart Day
- Eastender at East Sheen Library
- Destination Richmond
- Green fingers win prizes for winning allotments
- Free flood warnings for residents at risk in Richmond
- Huge turnout for older people's event
- RISE event success
- Best Cemetery Award for Richmond and East Sheen
- Take part in Black History Month celebrations
- World Sight Day celebrated
- Question time comes to Richmond
- 2M fears local people may loose out to Infrastructure Planning Commission (IPC)
- 1,000 people control their social care budgets
- £2.85 million for new homes
- Richmond Council confirms sponsor for Shene Academy
- Richmond Council extends CO2 parking
Release Date: 19/10/2009
Spreading the message of road safety
Sixty children from primary schools across Richmond upon Thames have been trained to become the borough’s new Junior Safety Officers (JSOs), following a day long workshop held at the Council.
The volunteer JSO’s, who are all in year five at their schools, will work closely with Richmond Council’s safety officers and will be responsible for spreading safety messages to other children through presentations in assemblies, competitions and by displaying posters around their classrooms. They will encourage pupils to take responsibility for their own safety and for keeping each other out of harm’s way.
Cllr David Trigg, Member for Traffic, Transport and Parking, said: “We want to make sure all our children know how important it is to be aware of the potential dangers at home and on their way to school every day and having two junior safety officers their own age is a great way of spreading the word.
“All the new JSOs have shown us how keen they are to help their friends stay safe so I’m very pleased to welcome them into the new roles. Last year’s team did a lot of good work so I’m looking forward to seeing the new team come up with even more creative ways of keeping their friends safe and sound.”
Following their training with safety staff at the Council, they met Cllr Trigg, Cabinet, Mayor Celia Hodges, and the borough’s safety mascot Debra the Zebra. The children were all presented with their Junior Safety Officer folders, which contains ideas on how they can get the message across and the type of issues they should focus on like being aware of traffic outside school, cycle safety and not playing with chemical products like cleaning fluids at home. They will also remind classmates about water safety at home, near rivers and at the seaside when they are on holiday.
The Junior Safety Officer programme was launched in Richmond upon Thames and Kingston schools five years ago and since then has been adopted by Transport for London and put in to place at schools across the capital. Every year all JSO’s are entered into a competition to find the best officer each year, and they are presented with a prize pack. Last year’s winners were Ciaran Tomlin and Ben Brownscombe, who were both year five pupils at St Edmund’s primary school.
View the full press release