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Give smoking the Red Card
13-Jul-2009
Children in South Northamptonshire have been educated on the dangers of inhaling second hand smoke.
Health Improvement Officer from South Northamptonshire Council, Claire Fairbrother, held a smoke free homes session with year six children at Towcester Primary School on Thursday, 25 June.
As well as keeping their home safe from fire children were also shown the dangers of smoking.
Pupils took part in practical activities that demonstrated how lung damage from smoking could feel, this included running around and increasing their heart rate and taking breaths through a straw.
Children were given statistics on smoking, and shown the chemicals that were used to make a cigarette.
Health Improvement Officer, Claire Fairbrother, said: “The importance of educating children at school age is vitally important.
“Even if I have helped educate only one pupil not to smoke I will have made a difference.
“This was our first session and it went really well- we hope to roll out more in the future.”
Not only did children learn about the impact smoking can have on their health they were also educated on the dangers of second hand smoke and smoking in their homes.
Smoking related fires are the biggest killers in accidental fires in the home.
Northamptonshire County Council Fire and Rescue Service have joined forces with other partners and colleagues to promote the Countywide Smokefree Homes scheme.
District Liaison Officer for Northamptonshire Fire and Rescue, Marie Rose, said:
“We are very pleased to be an active partner in this smokefree homes scheme – from our point of view, the less people that smoke in the home the less likely they are to be victims of a house fire.”
Since 2000, nearly a third of all accidental fire deaths in Northamptonshire have been caused by cigarettes or smoking related materials and households with a smoker are almost one and a half times more likely to suffer a fire than non-smoking households.
The students will now use what they have been taught to produce a poster that will be judged, and the winner of the competition will receive a special prize from players from Northampton Town Football Club, who are supporting the Give Smoking the Red Card scheme.
For advice call Northamptonshire Stop Smoking Team call (0845) 6013116 or for the fire service for home fire safety checks call (0800) 3899950.
Year six children with 'What’s in tobacco' resource.