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More than 2500 rural Queensland school children will learn important personal safety skills through Bravehearts’ acclaimed education program ‘Ditto’s Keep Safe Adventure’ when the program goes on a two-week tour through central Queensland.
The child safety expedition is backed by a $10,000 grant through Queensland Police Service and Suncorp Insurance’s ‘Safer Queensland Community Grants’ program. It will allow Bravehearts to deliver 16 shows across communities including Dalby, Longreach, Winton and Charleville reaching 25 schools.
The 40-minute live production has visited more than 550,000 Australian children aged three to eight since 2008, educating them with strategies and skills to stay safe in a range of situations from bullying to sexual assault.
It is delivered through six strategic locations across Australia including South East Queensland and Cairns and will educate, empower and protect a record number of children in 2016 with an increasing number of schools, child care centres and communities playing a key role in prevention.
“Preventing child sexual assault starts with educating and empowering children with vital knowledge and skills to keep safe and encouraging teachers, carers, parents and other members of the community to play their part in creating child-safe environments,” says Bravehearts Founder Hetty Johnston AM.
“Since Ditto’s Keep Safe Adventure was introduced it has really been embraced by schools and early learning centres which has given us a significant boost towards our commitment to reaching every Australian child with our child safety message.
“We’re very fortunate that through QPS and Suncorp Insurance’s grants program we’re able to deliver a two-week program that will see us educate thousands of country Queensland children.
“The beauty of the program is that the rules Ditto teaches children are incredibly simple and effective, making it easy for parents and carers to reinforce the safety messages at home in a non-confronting way.”
Bravehearts Vision is to make Australia the safest place in the world to raise a child with its child safety blueprint The Three Piers to Prevention – Educate, Empower, Protect.
Ditto’s 5 Principles:
Based on Bravehearts’ Ditto Keep Safe Adventure program, the 5 basic principles we need to teach our children (remember: it’s never too early to sow the seeds of personal safety) are:
1) To trust their feelings and to distinguish between ‘yes’ and ‘no’ feelings
2) To say ‘no’ to adults if they feel unsafe and unsure
3) That they own their own bodies
4) That nothing is so yucky that they can’t tell someone about it
5) That if they feel unsafe or unsure to run and tell someone they trust.
Would you like to talk to someone? Call Bravehearts information and support line on 1800 272 831.
For media enquiries, contact Barrett Gibson bgibson@bravehearts.org.au or Jason Oxenbridge jasono@bravehearts.org.au