[vc_row][vc_column][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_toggle title=”What is the Safety House Program?” open=”true” el_id=”1447647856247-16fd38d1-9621″]The Safety House Program offers a place of safety for children when they are away from the security and comfort of their home and school environment. The Safety House sign on a house letterbox or shop window means that the premises have been thoroughly checked and designated as a safe place. Children can go to that house or shop if they feel unsafe on their way to and from school.
For parents, the Safety House sign represents reassurance and peace of mind and shows that the local community is helping to keep their area a safe place for children.
The Safety House Program is a positive preventative measure, which successfully provides assistance to children in distress and which acts as an ongoing deterrent to those people seeking to harm children in any way.
The Safety House program also provides personal safety education to primary school children through school shows and publications. These initiatives provide children with the skills and confidence to better manage their personal safety.[/vc_toggle][vc_toggle title=”How is the Safety House Program run?” el_id=”1447647856260-0a5cbd80-6fd9″]The Safety House Association of Western Australia Inc. manages the Safety House program on state wide basis. Safety House WA staff work with primary school Parent Associations across the state to establish local Safety House Committees. These committees involve their local community in setting up, operating and monitoring Safety Houses in their area. A local Safety House Committee Coordinator runs their local program with advice, support and resources available from Safety House staff.[/vc_toggle][vc_toggle title=”What is the Safety House Child and Parent Handbook?” el_id=”1447647856274-bbba9252-7ee1″]
The Safety House Association of Western Australia Inc. works in partnership with Britel Enterprises Pty. Ltd. of Wangara to produce and distribute the Safety House Child and Parent Handbook. Britel contacts Principals in public and private schools around the state and offers to produce a handbook identified with the school name and carrying advertising for local businesses in the area. The printed handbooks are then delivered to the school and distributed free of charge to every child. There is absolutely no cost to the school for this program.
To fund the production and printing of the handbook, Britel Enterprises approaches local businesses and organisations to book advertising space on the cover and inside the booklet. The handbooks are then produced and delivered to the local primary school for free distribution to every child.
The useful and interesting Safety House Child and Parent Handbook is in a handy sized, easy to read format, engaging children in issues of their personal safety and well being. The text, pictures, puzzles and games will help children identify challenging situations and learn how to cope with them by seeking assistance from parents, teachers, police officers or at the secure haven of local Safety Houses.
[/vc_toggle][vc_toggle title=”What do Safety House people do?” el_id=”1447647856287-e9ade5ca-3915″]The role of the Safety Householder is to assist children in need by offering them help and protection. In non-emergency situations such as bullying, frightened or lost children, the Safety House person contacts the child’s parents whilst offering assistance to the child. In emergency situations the Safety House person will call the Police and the child’s parents whilst offering protection to the child.[/vc_toggle][vc_toggle title=”How can I become involved in the Safety House Program?” el_id=”1447647856299-a81793d8-c50e”]To become involved in the Safety House program you can:
– Join the Safety House Committee at your local school
– Help your local Safety House Committee by becoming a Safety House Monitor
– Participate in your local Safety House program by applying to be a Safety House
– Support the local and school activities organised by your local Safety House Committee
– Contribute money or goods as a donation to your local Safety House Committee
– Make a tax deductible donation to the Safety House Association of WA Inc.[/vc_toggle][vc_toggle title=”Who can become a Safety House person?” el_id=”1447648235912-3c646c58-ae6d”]To have your home become a Safety House, you must be a responsible adult, who:
– Cares about the safety and well-being of children
– Has a house suitable for easy access by children in need
– Is available in or around the house during peak school travel hours
– Has been interviewed and accepted by a Safety House WA Representative
– Has at least one resident who holds a valid Working with Children Card
– Has agreed to be have all adult residents of their residence police-checked and approved by Safety House WA Inc.
If you would like to become a Safety Householder please apply through your local Safety House Committee or contact Safety House WA Inc. on (08) 9343 7511 for more information.[/vc_toggle][vc_toggle title=”Am I covered by any Safety House insurance policy as a Safety House Committee Member?” el_id=”1447648235562-b8410f04-be69″]Yes. The Safety House Association of WA carries Volunteer Worker Injury and Public Liability insurance policies that cover all Safety House Committee Coordinators and Committee Members whilst they are undertaking any volunteer work on behalf of the Association.[/vc_toggle][vc_toggle title=”Am I covered by any Safety House insurance policy as a Safety Householder?” el_id=”1447648234567-9c269638-0705″]
No. It is strongly recommended that all individual Safety Houses ensure that they have adequate insurance cover for their personal needs. Just as with Neighbourhood Watch WA, being a member of the Safety House program does not make any difference to the resident’s existing insurance cover situation but they are definitely not covered by any Safety House WA insurance policy.
[/vc_toggle][vc_toggle title=”How can you identify a Safety House?” el_id=”1447648282635-d25d0a5d-1bd6″]
A Safety House is clearly identified by a yellow and black triangular smiling house sign, known as IMA, that is affixed to letterboxes of participating houses. In some areas, commercial premises or shops may also be Safety Houses in which case the sign is affixed to the front window near the front door or entrance.[/vc_toggle][vc_toggle title=”When can children use a Safety House?” el_id=”1447648282253-f2f3fbc3-c2a0″]As the Safety House slogan says; Feeling unsure? Knock on a Safety House door!
A Safety House can be used by children travelling to and from school whenever they feel uncomfortable or unsafe. Reasons for a child using a Safety House may include:
– Being bullied by other children or teenagers
– Being injured, hurt or feeling unwell
– Being frightened by animals
– Being approached or followed by a person who makes them feel unsafe
– Being offered alcohol, drugs or cigarettes by another person
– Being lost or confused[/vc_toggle][vc_toggle title=”What is the Safety House NOMINATION HOT BUTTON for?” el_id=”1447648281870-839efd39-88b3″]The Safety House NOMINATION HOT BUTTON gives anyone the opportunity to nominate people who they think would make good Safety Houses. Perhaps you are not a Safety House but know someone who is home during the day, has an easily accessible home and would like to be a Safety House?
If you know a friendly, reliable person, please click on the NOMINATION HOT BUTTON and fill in the details. Send the report to Safety House just by clicking the SEND button on the page.
These details will then be passed on to a local Safety House Committee Member and they will contact the person and explain the Safety House program to them. Whenever a person you have nominated joins up as a Safety House we will send you a $10 Safety House Gift Voucher.
The more people we have involved in the Safety House program, the better the chance of building a safer environment for all the kids in your local community. [/vc_toggle][vc_toggle title=”Why should I nominate someone to become a Safety House?” el_id=”1447648281268-7ec57b10-63c0″]Firstly, the more Safety Houses we have, the more we are contributing in providing vital protection for children as they travel to and from school each day. Community involvement and support is so important to look after our kids out there. Becoming a Safety House is easy to do, it costs nothing and it is a great way to help your community. Secondly, for every person you successfully nominate and they join as a Safety House, we will send you a $10 Safety House Gift Voucher which can be used for any Safety House purchase, such as, merchandise items. The downloadable Safety House Merchandise Price List and Order Form is available in the DOCUMENTS section of this website.[/vc_toggle][vc_toggle title=”What is the SAFETY HOUSE USE REPORT HOT BUTTON for?” el_id=”1447648280882-fc98577e-51a2″]The SAFETY HOUSE USE REPORT HOT BUTTON is the easiest way to report whenever a Safety House has been used to assist a child in need of help.
Click on the SAFETY HOUSE USE REPORT HOT BUTTON and please fill in the details of the incident, no matter how trivial or unimportant. Send the report to Safety House just by clicking the SEND button on the page. A Safety House person will then follow up if more information is required. It is important to report every Safety House use, regardless of how trivial the incident. [/vc_toggle][vc_toggle title=”Why should I report every Safety House use?” el_id=”1447648435766-f1e73b3d-64c3″]The number of reported Safety House uses is an important factor in our discussions with the WA Department of Education, the WA Police and Community Safety Officers in local Government Councils around the state. This helps us all work together to build a safer environment for all the kids in your local community.
Many Safety House use incidents seem unimportant at the time but they can still be very upsetting for a young child. Safety Houses are there to help any child in need and we want everyone to know the amount of good work our Safety House volunteers do in their community.[/vc_toggle][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][/vc_column][/vc_row]
