Kidsafe Victoria has developed this community awareness campaign to reduce the number of children left unattended in cars across the state.
The ‘Do Not Leave Children In Cars’ campaign is asking parents to take their kids with them whenever they get out of the car, just as they do their everyday valuables, to avoid potentially tragic consequences. Leaving children unattended in a car, even for a short period of time, can be fatal, especially on hot days. Children are particularly at risk because they can lose fluid quickly, become dehydrated and suffer from heatstroke.
The Heat Health Heat Plan of Victoria recognises that babies and young children are most affected by heat.
A key feature of the campaign is Kidsafe Victoria’s 'Do Not Leave Children Unattended in Cars' signs and community awareness kits, which are ideally suited for local government, car parks at shopping/cafe strips, parks, gardens, shopping centres, entertainment venues, business premises, schools, early childhood centres, sporting facilities and aquatic centres.
The kits provide organisations with the tools to raise awareness and reduce the number of incidents of children being left unattended in cars in their local areas over time. Kits are available from Kidsafe Victoria
How can your sector be a part of this important campaign?
Maternal and Child Health Nurses can discuss injury prevention with new parents at ‘age and stage appointments’; messages about ‘Do not leave children in cars’ could be incorporated in discussion about child car restraints. Community awareness kits, available on the Kidsafe Victoria website, could be given out.
Early childhood centres and schools should install ‘Do not Leave Children Unattended in Cars’ signs in their car parks, and pickup and drop off zones. Community awareness kits, available on the Kidsafe Victoria website, could also be given out.
Councils should install ‘Do not Leave Children Unattended in Cars’ signs in car parks, especially at shopping centres, café strips, parks, gardens, entertainment/gaming and sport venues (Kidsafe Victoria website has photos and logos of councils who have already done this). Resource kit available here
General public, if you see an unattended child in a car on a hot day, look for a parent/carer and if not available promptly call ‘000’ for emergency services to attend.
For more information on the campaign, check out the Kidsafe Victoria website
Submit your story!