A New Approach To Stranger Awareness

Here at Unity Primary Academy we teach children how to take responsibility for their own safety, should they get lost or feel unsafe. It helps them learn about the kind of strangers who are safe for them to speak to should they find themselves in a difficult situation, and the buildings they can go into if they need help.

Rather than scaring children it equips them with the skills they need to stay safe.

Three key points

• A safer stranger is a person who is working at a job which helps people. Safer strangers will usually be wearing a uniform. Safer strangers could be police officers, traffic wardens, shopkeepers, check-out assistants, and others.
• Safer buildings could be banks, post offices, libraries, medical centres, shops, supermarkets, leisure centres, and others.
• If you get lost, or feel unsafe, and there is no adult around that you know and trust, look for a safer stranger who you can ask for help. If you can't see a safer stranger outside, look for a safer building you can go into, to ask for help from the people who work there.

How you can help your child to stay safe

• Make sure your child knows their phone number and address. You could give them a card to keep in their pocket with these details on.
• You should always try to keep your children within eyesight, or ensure that they are with another responsible adult.
• Children need to understand that they should never go off with someone without telling you first.
• Make sure your children are familiar with the local area by taking them on casual walkabouts. Point out safe buildings that they could go into, or local members of the community they could speak to if they needed help.
• Older children should be taught to stay aware of their surroundings, keep iPods at a low level and stick to busy, well-lit areas, avoiding shortcuts.

20.11.2020
All children from Nursery to Year 6 completed this PowerPoint, and had lots of interesting conversations with their "safe adults"

Further Support