Picture above: 'Thumbs up for Health & Safety' (Back
L-R) Val Brown, neighbourhood services officer, Midland Heart,
Charlotte Davis, headmistress, William Cowper Primary School, 'Ivor
Goodsite' and Dan Platten, health and safety advisor, William Davis
Ltd with pupils (front L-R) Shonte Forrester (5), Afsheem Merchant
(8), Khalid Gumaa (7) Daunte Robin (9) and Rayon Atuahene
(9).
Pupils from William Cowper Primary School in Newtown, Birmingham
were given an extra-special lesson in Health & Safety this week
from contractor and developer William Davis Ltd and RSL Midland
Heart, accompanied by 'Ivor Goodsite'.
'Ivor Goodsite' is a character developed by the Considerate
Constructors Scheme, which is a national strategy designed to
encourage best practice within the construction industry in
relation to the environment, workforce and the general public
including Health and Safety. William Davis is currently on site at
the £17m Crocodile Works project, which lies adjacent to the
school and therefore teaching the children the dangers of playing
near construction sites is extremely pertinent.
During the presentation selected children were invited on stage
to model, along with 'Ivor', site safety gear including hard hats,
high-vis jackets, ear defenders and goggles. In addition, Dan, who
is H&S advisor for the company, launched a competition asking
the children to design posters reflecting the Health & Safety
messages that they had learnt. He will return to the school on
Monday 6th July to select the winners.
"Construction sites can be extremely dangerous places for young
people so it's important to educate them from the beginning of a
project's duration." Said Dan, "Our 'H&S in Schools' programme
has provided an excellent platform to achieve this and characters
like 'Ivor Goodsite' simply help to engage the children by making
it a fun learning experience all the while equipping them with
important information."
Val Brown, neighbourhood services officer at Midland Heart
commented: "We are passionate about getting local children involved
in the community. By communicating with them in a fun and
interactive way will not only educate them on the history of
Crocodile Works but highlight the dangers involved on site if the
correct procedures are not followed. We will continue to work with
local schools in the community to ensure neighbourhoods are safe
and desirable places to live."
Crocodile Works is a partnership scheme between William Davis
and Midland Heart. On the site of a former machete factory, this
major regeneration project involves the creation of 126 apartments
and 42 houses for homebuy, outright sale or rent.