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General Safety Issues

KEEPING CHILDREN SAFE WHILE AT SCHOOL (GUEST POST)

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With all the recent events surrounding schools in the news, many parents are considering pulling their children out of the public school systems and homeschooling them. While homeschooling may or may not be an option for every parent, how does one send their child to school every day and ensure their safety? Schools take every precaution to ensure the children who attend have a safe and great environment so they can learn. However; even the best establishments have flaws and there is always that chance that something detrimental can happen. Here are some tips to keep children safe when they are away at school. 

1. Educate 

There is no sure method to keep a child 100 percent safe at school, but there are some things that parents can do to help a child know what to do. For instance, teach the children about talking to stranger danger and what to do while waiting for the bus or walking home from school. A child usually knows if a person is usually in their school and if anything looks or feel suspicious, they should report it to their teachers immediately. Also, give the child a list of emergency numbers, like mom and dad’s cellular phones and grandma’s home numbers so that they may get a hold of their family should there be an issue. Most schools have payphone system or a child can call from the office if necessary to get reach a parent or guardian. 

2. Give Kids a Cellular Phone

There are some parents who are adamantly against children having a cellular phone, but many parents are so thankful that their children have had them during recent events. While kids are generally irresponsible by nature, these phones may be the only connection between the parents and child should the school be on lock-down or there be an issue. School lines can become jammed with concerned parents calling, but knowing that a parent can call a cell phone can put the mind at ease. The phones can also be used to call the police for a teacher or can be used to call an ambulance. Each school has their own policy regarding cell phones and their usage in the schools, but most will at least allow them in the lockers. 

3. Be In Contact With the School

When it comes to bullying and things of this nature, make sure to make a presence at the school. By talking with the principal and the teachers, they will know that the parent is heavily involved in their child’s life. If there is an incident that involves bullying, make sure to get to the bottom of it right away. Involve school staff and make sure that the child feels like the situation is being handled. If the situation is not rectified and bullying continues, parents have rights to protect their children at all costs. 

While the schools have certainly been in the news a great deal the past few years, they are still one of the safest places for children to be. There are some incidents that happen just because not every child is raised the same and also mental illness can play a great factor in this. Still with all the bad news, there are many good things that happen in the schools; it is all about preparing the children for the future.

About The Author:

This post is contributed by Christine Maddox. Currently she is pursuing her Master’s degree from University of Texas as well as blogging for www.4nannies.com. She loves to write anything related to parenting, kids, nanny care etc. She can be reached via email at: christine.4nannies @ gmail.com.

General Safety Issues

PORTABLE APPLIANCE TESTERS ADVICE – SHARE THE BURDEN IN THE WORKPLACE (GUEST POST)

When push comes to shove as they say, there’s no getting away from the fact that business and building owners are charged with the responsibility of maintaining the health and safety of their workers/occupants. Needless to say, this isn’t exactly the smallest of burdens to say the least and one that’s always likely to get on top of some – especially those in the business for the first time.

However, according to the professional portable appliance testers of the UK there are dozens of ways and means by which business owners can share the responsibility among any number of employees and thus ease the weight otherwise placed exclusively on their own shoulders. And while all the measures in the world can’t take away from the fact that they are ultimately responsible for what occurs and where, they at least stand to make their lives easier when it comes to addressing electrical safety.

Consider the following tips from the UK’s Portable Appliance Tester community serving the business world:

Educate

The foremost consideration of importance is that of education – as in helping workers better understand what PAT Testers are and what they do. Chances are that most will have seen plenty of those little PAT stickers gracing tested appliances across the business, but do they really know why they’re there or what they mean?

Unless you yourself have taken the time to educate them, chances are the answer is a no.

By first giving workers an idea of what PAT Testing actually is, you stand a much better chance of driving home its importance. And what’s more, as soon as any given employee realises what a PAT sticker means and why it is of value, there’s a pretty good chance their future observations will be more astute and help pinpoint where they may be missing or no longer valid.

It’s not a case of teaching the whole workforce how to use a Seaward Primetest 100, but rather just conveying the basics of why PAT Testing is of such mandatory importance.

Involve

Next up, the brains behind the UK’s health and safety services cannot strongly enough convey the importance of getting as many workers as possible personally involved in electrical safety initiatives at work. Again, it isn’t a case of teaching everyone up to degree standard, but rather building safe and workable habits for the long term.

Annual or one-off training sessions are as dull as dishwater and never fail to depress. As such, it is a much better idea to champion day-by-day initiatives of a more gradual and on-going nature than blast workers with all the facts and figures all at once. Part of the important PAT process is a simple thorough visual inspection of all electronic appliances before and ideally after use – try to work this into a daily checklist of duties for everyone. In addition, provide the necessary materials or points of contact for even the slightest concerns to be voiced and thus help bring problems to light when and they may occur.

And another great tip is to think about periodically sending workers from different areas of the business to carry out their own inspections of areas they don’t primarily work in – chances are they will be much pickier and thus highlight problems others may have missed. It’s all a case of structuring and delegating a few simple day-to-day checks that become second nature in no time at all.

Interact

What never fails to fail is the kind of system whereby a boss or building owner talks the hind legs off everyone about how great it’s going to be, only for that to be the last mention of visible effort pertaining to it. By contrast, what never fails to work is genuine and thoughtful interaction whereby one-on-one contact is made with workers and building occupants on a regular basis to demonstrate that the subject really is of importance to everyone.

What’s more, next time the inspectors make a visit armed to the teeth with their Seaward Primetest 50 arsenals, give those already involved in the various safety initiatives plenty of time to see the process in action and ask questions. Some would argue this is time better spent elsewhere, others would say it’s a small price to pay for electrical health and safety awareness at work.

Listen

Last but not least, perhaps the most important thing of all to remember is the way in which the channel of communication needs to be two-way and encouraged. You can lecture a staff-force until blue in the face about the value of electrical safety and the merits of the Primetest 100, but everyone knows that lectures of such a kind tend to go in one ear and out the other unless the content is put into practice.

So, open new channels of communication by installing suggestion boxes, offering incentives for any positive ideas implemented and consider appointing at least one individual per department to monitor electrical safety, perhaps on a rotating basis.

Build the channels of communication strong enough and to a large extent you might just find that much of the responsibility is taken entirely out of your hands.

 By Francesca Holmes

Francesca Holmes is a private electrical engineering tutor from Weymouth who specialises in competence with the Seaward Primetest 50 and its various component devices. When not campaigning for a safer UK workplace, she is a keen sailor and doting mother of f

Thanks, Francesca, for this information about the importance of employees understanding the hazards associated with electrical testing.  When dielectric personal protective equipment is needed, please refer to Texas America Safety Company, for quality products.