Making Sudbury a safer place is the goal of the City of Greater Sudbury?s Safe Communities Coalition.
Tony Ingram, chair of the non-profit group which has representation from health and safety promotion groups, has 20 years experience in this area.
?We have a number of programs in health and safety underway, the Risk Watch program in the Rainbow and Catholic school boards, the Passport to Safety self test program for high school students, and a small business program,? said Ingram.
Risk Watch is based on programs from the National Fire Prevention Association in the United States.
?It is a school-based curriculum based on bicycle safety, fall prevention, and fire and burn prevention. Because it is a complete curriculum ready to use, teachers love it,? said Ingram.
In addition there is the new Hazardous House Display which travels to area schools, teaching children how to be safer at home.?
Leo Frappier, chair of Sudbury?s Risk Watch Coalition, says the display can also be set up for the benefit of seniors who wish to be better educated about home safety.
Passport to Safety, a brand new occupational health and safety program for youth workers, is available on the Internet. Students pay $9.95 to take a test. Once they pass, they can take the results to their existing employer or to a prospective employer.
The third program the coalition is involved with is the Safe Community Incentive program, geared to small business entrepreneurs. It is all about managing health and safety concerns.
?Successful participants can get a five percent rebate on their WSIB premiums,? said Ingram.
The Safe Community Foundation recently gave the coalition a seed grant of $7,000 to pursue other initiatives.
For more information, phone 521-8324, ext. 224.
