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THE DEPARTMENT OF Education is being called upon to bring in a health and safety module for primary school kids — with a particular emphasis on farm safety for children in rural areas.
It follows a spate of deaths on Irish farms this year.
In the latest such incident, a man sustained a serious head injury while fitting a tyre to a lorry at a farm in Co Clare on Wednesday. He later died from his injuries in hospital.
It brings to 20 the total number of lives lost so far this year — more than over the entire year in 2013. That total includes three children.
“There is room in subjects like Social, Personal and Health Education to include a module on health and safety, and in rural areas, this could be focused on farm safety,” President of the Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmers’ Association, Patrick Kent, said.
“Even in urban areas, there are children who go out to visit friends or relations on farms.
Children, along with older farmers, are most at risk when it comes to farm accidents, and the younger they become aware of these issues, the better.
The Health and Safety Authority hosted a conference on farm safety in Kilkenny yesterday — and has issued updated ‘harvest time’ advice for farmers on its website, including a code of practice to relating to children in agriculture.
Speaking ahead of the conference, IFA President Eddie Downey also called for farmers to refocus on safety.
“This requires a change in mindset, but safety needs to be a top priority on every farm and for every farm family,” Downey said.
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We always watched a farm safety video in primary school in the days leading up to summer holidays.
As a teacher, I don’t think it needs to be a whole module. I don’t wish to trivialise these deaths but I believe one or two SPHE lessons with a good and modern DVD, produced by the Dept of Agriculture, would suffice.
We watched one video a few times in primary school and I can still remember most of it because it showed the dangers of of slurry pits and PTOs in quite a graphic way for kids. It really worked for me.
It’s the parents that need the lessons not the kids. At that age the parents need to take responsibility in that kind of environment. What is the point of the a kid shown a video in school that it is not safe to do x when the parent let’s then do it regardless.
Rather than teach it to students during school time farming communities should organise some evening sessions for both parents and students. All the stakeholders should contribute.
I agree totally. It seems like schools are being loaded more and more with solving society’s problems – obesity, suidide, road safety, farm safety, cruelty to animals, alcohol/drug awareness etc etc. It’s what happens at home that shapes the child. A half hour lesson in school does very little to counteract the attitudes which develop in a home environment where there are smoking, drinking, ‘couldn’t-care-less’ parents.
Why should it be down to schools, why cant parents set some rules for their children on farms. Its always somebody else who has to take responsibility once its not parents. Do you leave you child play in the road where he may be knocked done no so why is a farmyard different?
Down
Ronan,
What about parents who are not aware of the dangers on farms simply because they are not farmers?
Children are attracted to farm activities whether they live on farms or don’t live on farms.
Education is necessary.
Yes education plays a role but parents must play a bigger one as showing this in primary school will be in one ear and out the other.
Also I bet all accidents were related to people who lived on the farm.
The more places you hear the message the better
Good idea, increased safety awareness needs to be promoted at all levels, at parents, at farmers, at kids. It would need to be pitched right so as not to be rejected, taking into account most teachers aren’t overly familiar with farms, whereas the students most at risk may well live on or by one.
Teaching such issues as farm safety, safe play, dangers of machinery etc is already on the SPHE curriculum at primary level under the Safety and Protection strand unit of the Myself strand. It is mentioned all the way up through the curriculum from the junior classes up to 5th and 6th.
think it would be a great idea to teach farm safty. see kids driving big tractors most days on back roads where I live. also while there at it they should do abs about depression and suicide . if they spend even a small percent of what they spend on penalty point abs it might have some effect.
Not every kid lives on a farm, so pointless for the major who don’t.
No but a lot of kids live near farms and parent’s think nothing of then playing in the feild next door. I’ve had to run local kids using bales as jumping platform’s not realising that the bales could fall on them or in the case of round roll over them. As said above a day or 2 would do.
It cannot be pointless if a live is saved .
Whatever can be done therefore in this regard is important.
It amazing how farming groups and individuals are calling for information regarding safety to be introduced into the school curriculum when a lot of farming accident are caused by poor standards , lack of concentration , inappropriate behaviour and so on. Any life lost in one too many.
However I don’t see any of the same organisations / individuals calling for the school curriculum to include education on depression / mental health and the devastating effects of same which result in many suicides. The farming group are not exempt when it comes to suicide and many farming families have lost loved ones to suicide.
While 20 deaths is too many it’s a long way from the 700 ++ figures for suicide.We do need to introduce many changes to school curriculums inclusive of all types of Heath and Safety issues but in the same way we have to educate our young people( the future of this country) that’s it’s all right to speak about mental health and depression and suicide. We have to teach them how to communicate and express their inner feeling and we have to teach them about self esteem and self worth and that each and every person is very special to their families , friends, school /work colleagues and to their communities.
Suicide is a very very complex and complicated issue and not one that can easily be fixed. An improved curriculum would be a good starting point.
Farms have a number of high risk potentials. A slurry pit. Silage bales. Large animals. Large machinery. Vetinary medicines. Tired farmers. A combination of all these makes a minefield. Children should not be in these areas.
I grew up on a farm and as a child my father spent his time roaring at us to get off this that or the other! We were children, unless he built a 10 foot around the whole perimeter of our farm, there was no way he could monitor us every second of the day during the summer, my mother also worked on the farm, we didn’t have babysitters or summer camps or anywhere else to go unless it was a friends house and 9 times out of ten, it was a farm as well. If children listened all the time, there would be no accidents involving children! Farmers spend morning to sunset working and trying to earn a living. Most can’t afford to employ others to share the load and this in turn leads to many doing the work of 4 men and working against weather especially in the summer. This is when most accidents happen.
Safety needs to be integrated to the school curriculum; not just in primary but in secondary and third level as well. What people have to realise is that no matter where our children live or where they end up working, safety matters. If today’s children grow with an ingrained safety awareness and culture, then our future workplace will be a much safer place.
Do what the HSA do in other industries and prosecute them.What’s the difference between unsafe farming practices and construction ? Sick and tired of seeing farmers getting the easy end of the stick.
For the record I’m born , bred and live in rural Ireland .
Being born and bred in rural Ireland hardly makes you an expert on farming or farming practices but don’t let that stop you from using the article to insult us. Judging by most of comments, a lot of people have little or no clue of what it’s like to live on a farm, you don’t travel to your place of work as a farmer! The farm is right beside your home. It may be easy to contain a child in a semi d or a home with nothing but a lawn and drive but farms are different. Children get in accidents all the time, not just on farms! Do children who don’t live on farms only stay in their gardens? No they don’t! I live in an estate now and kids are up and down the road on bikes and running around! Now you think a child on a farm will stay around the house and not move! If only!
Oh ya cause putting farmers in jail or fining them is the answer. Farmers like having things right and tidy but most farmers do their own repairs in order to save money(as a matter of nessicity) and sometimes if a part is required or more time it’s left to one side to be done again.
Other industries mostly have employees and the HSA have taken a strong line against farmers with employees(as against a family operation)
Outside of my own self employed business , I own and manage my own land , 17 acres.I am surrounded by farming .I see it everyday.Farmers flying in the face of safety.Time for farmers to own up to their own responsibilities , no more excuses.What’s next a EU subsidy for safety ?
So farmers who absolve themselves of their responsibilities should be exempt from the laws that govern others then Cognac ?
Sorry , Cormac
When the HSA started inspecting farms they treated them the same as any other enterprise, over the years they did not notice any difference in ethos on farm so they changed how they applied the law…same law but just applied different. there has been an improvement of the thinking of safety on farm.
this is what happened! not my view of it.
Oh and the law also requires you to report any work place injury to the HSA as you might know farmers suffer superficial injuries regularly and if we reported all of these to the HSA they wouldn’t have time to do anything else
Devastating!People have to be made more aware of the dangers in this area!
Safety on a farm is 100% the parents responsibility….children should never be unattended on a farm. If the child’s parents are not from a farm, or not competent in farm safety…they should be accompanied by the farm owner to keep the children safe and make the parents aware of the dangers. However, hearing the safety message in the classroom with some good focused DVDs and literature I believe will lead to children respecting the dangers, and their parents constant warnings that bit more than just hearing it at home.
theres a familt near me the are agricultural contractors the are to mean to hire anyone the have there son only 14 years old driving he is on the public road from 7 am to 10 and 11 at night on supervised with allsorts of equipment who is looking after his safety the public safety not his parents have reported it to the garda the say the cant do anything about it unless the catch him bull shit the should b on there case straight away in my eye that’s child abuse
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