The 8 key areas of the Leeds and Grenville Risk Watch Coalition are:

• Motor Vehicle Safety
• Fire and Burn Prevention
• Choking, Suffocation and Strangulation Prevention
• Poisoning Prevention
• Falls Prevention
• Firearms Injury Prevention
• Bike and Pedestrian Safety
• Water Safety

Risk Watch is a school based educational curriculum for children in preschool through grade eight. It is presented through a co-operative partnership by fire, police, health, educators and community organizations. This program has been carefully designed and tested to provide information to promote good safety choices for children and their families. This program is currently being taught in Leeds & Grenville by teachers in the Upper Canada District School Board and Catholic District School Board of Eastern Ontario.

For Canadian children under the age of 14, the number one health risk is not violence, drugs or disease, it's injuries. Each year, 1000 kids age 14 and under are killed from unintentional injuries, and 2,000 are permanently disabled. One in four children are injured seriously enough to require medical attention.

The goals of this program are:

1. To create safer homes and communities for children and families throughout Leeds & Grenville by providing them with the information and support they need to make positive, health-promoting choices about their personal safety and well being.
2. To reduce the number of children who are seriously injured or killed each year as a result of a preventable injury.
3. To make Leeds & Grenville the safest community in Ontario
4. To establish ourselves as a lead agency and supporter for the implementation of Risk Watch in other communities throughout Ontario.

The objectives for this program are:

1. To increase awareness and knowledge among children aged Kindergarten to Grade 8 and their parents potential risks
2. To enable children to identify potential risks and/or hazards at home, at school and at play
3. To enable children to identify ways to stay safe and prevent injuries
4. To enable children to make safe choices in risky situations
5. To work with the teaching staff to deliver the Risk Watch curriculum to all Kindergarten through Grade 8 students in Leeds & Grenville
6. To measure and document the effectiveness of the Risk Watch curriculum in at least three classrooms at each module level (15 classes minimum)
7. to provide the Office of the Ontario Fire Marshall and Ontario Chief Coroner with valid documentation to promote Province-wide implementations of Risk Watch
8. To enhance the effectiveness of public safety programs through co-operation of emergency services of Fire, Police , Ambulance and Health Unit working in partnership with educators and community organizations such as Red Cross."

For more information on Risk Watch, contact Sergeant Doug Locke, Community Safety Officer either by e-mail at dlocke@brockville.com or phone (613) 342-0127 Extension 4228