School holiday courses launched

Wish your child was putting a few days of their summer holiday to constructive use?

Want them to learn a skill but have a positive and fun experience alongside other youngsters?

This summer, St John Ambulance London (Prince of Wales's) District will be staging a number of first aid courses specifically designed for the youth audience. Young people can choose to take part in a Young first aider course, a Babysitter first aid course, or a two-day Youth first aid course.

The programme for each one has been tailored to make the material easy to understand and to provide young people with a basic introduction to managing incidents and understanding potential emergency situations.

The Young first aider course is for those between 11 and 17 and shows youngsters how to cope in an emergency. It lasts for one day and covers the likes of casualty care, burns and scalds, muscle and joint injuries, fainting and resuscitation.

The Babysitter first aid course focuses on emergency situations that may arise when looking after young children. It covers similar content to the Young First Aid course with a focus on baby and child resuscitation. It lasts for five hours and also includes a talk about what should be in a first aid kit.

The Youth first aid course is a more comprehensive course which takes two days and is for those aged 14 to 17. In addition to the Young first aider subjects, it covers heat exhaustion, seizures, severe allergic reaction and spinal injuries.

The courses are being run at the Marylebone Training Centre in London on various dates in July and August.

According to the Child Accident Prevention Trust, around two million children have accidents each year in the UK with 2,000 children and young people admitted to hospital each week as a result of their injuries. Of these, six will die.

St John Ambulance London (Prince of Wales's) District is also encouraging adults to brush up on their first aid skills and be fully equipped to handle incidents in and around the home.

Specific adult courses are also geared toward parents, childminders or those caring for young people in the workplace.
Len Bamber, CEO of St John Ambulance London (Prince of Wales's) District said, "Only 14 per cent of adults surveyed are currently first aid trained yet it is such a vital skill to have. We know that first aid saves lives and can prevent permanent injuries.

"We undertook extensive research before developing these courses and have designed them to be as accessible to as many people as possible."

For further information about the courses available call 020 7258 7014 or visit
www.sja.org.uk