Easter holiday safety message
AUTHORITIES in Inverclyde have joined forces to issue an Easter safety message as pupils finish up for the holidays.
Senior representatives from Inverclyde Council, Police Scotland and the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service have appealed direct to parents asking them to take a keen interest in what their children are up to during the springtime school break as part of the ‘Do You Know?’ safety campaign.
Schools finish up for the Easter break today, Friday 31 March 2023, and will reopen on Monday 17 April 2023.
In a joint letter, Inverclyde police commander, Chief Inspector Damian Kane, local fire and rescue senior officer, David McCarrey, and the council’s police and fire scrutiny committee chair, Councillor David Wilson, asked for parents’ support to ensure young people stay safe during the Easter break.
They said: “We all have a duty to make sure our young people are safe and by working together we can ensure the Easter holidays are memorable for all the right reasons.”
The letter highlights the ongoing ‘Do You Know?’ campaign that encourages parents to ask themselves if they know what their child is up to and if they are in harm’s way.
The full letter is as follows:
Staying safe this Easter
As the Easter holidays begin we want our young people to make the most of the time off and enjoy themselves in a safe and responsible manner. Hopefully some nicer weather is on the way too so that we can all enjoy the great outdoors and the many facilities and attractions right on our doorstep.
While the vast majority of our young people are well-behaved and conduct themselves in an appropriate manner, holiday periods tend to see an increase in large-scale youth gatherings. These gatherings can lead to various forms of anti-social behaviour, often involving alcohol or drugs that puts our young people at risk and also puts additional pressure on emergency services. Such behaviour is also intimidating and causes distress for people in our communities, in our town and village centres, for businesses and their staff, and on public transport.
Setting fires can be another concern at the best of times but particularly during dry spells of weather when fire can spread rapidly and put lives and property at risk.
During the holidays is also a time when people, including young people, visit beaches and reservoirs but open water can also be extremely dangerous and sometimes fatal so we encourage everyone to please exercise caution and take heed of warning signs.
We ask once again for the support of parents in reinforcing what it means to be a responsible citizen and to remind young people that any form of anti-social or illegal behaviour is unacceptable. We are also urging parents and carers to ask themselves ‘Do You Know?’.
In recent years the council, police and other partner agencies have joined forces to develop the ‘Do You Know?’ campaign.
It aims to encourage parents and carers to ask that simple question: Do you know where your child is?
If it’s late in the evening and there are reports of large-scale groups gathering in the area on social media, Do you know if your child is there?
If there are concerns over the safety of young people at these gatherings, Do you know if your child is safe?
If there are incidents associated with large scale gatherings which affect our communities, Do you know if your child was involved?
Not knowing the answer to these and other similar questions should be a real concern.
We all have a duty to make sure our young people are safe and by working together we can ensure the Easter holidays are memorable for all the right reasons.
Thank you for your time and thank you in advance for your support.
The police, fire service, and council will also be sharing safety messages and updates on their respective social media channels during the school break.