COASTGUARDS WARN PARENTS TO WATCH CHILDREN AFTER A RASH OF MISSING CHILDREN AROUND UK COAST

AS August is set to be the busiest month of the year on UK beaches, Coastguards around the UK were busy in the first weekend of the month, coordinating 319 search and rescue incidents, many involving missing children on the coast. On 1st August alone, Dover Coastguard and beach lifeguards were searching for 45 missing children at 1.00pm at Camber Sands and Coastguard rescue teams from Ayr, Girvan and Ardrossan searched for a missing 2-year old girl on Ayr beach for 90 minutes.

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) is urging parents to keep children close by as 'The Sea Smart Safety Survey' shows that nearly a fifth (17.78%) lost sight of their children while on the beach last year, 50% of which were missing for more than 5 minutes. 

Although parents consider their children going missing to be one of the key dangers to worry about when at the coast with children under the age of 14 years old, only 30% said they made sure their children stayed in sight as a precaution. 

To ensure children are reunited with their parents quickly, the MCA Sea Smart campaign, which promotes sea and beach safety to parents of young children, is giving free children's beach wristbands for the second year running. The waterproof 'Sea Smart Beach Bands' allow parents to write their mobile phone number so that if their child does become lost, they can be reunited straight away. The 'Sea Smart Beach Bands' come in eye-catching colours of neon pink, neon lime and yellow glow and can be obtained free from most Tourist Information Centres, Lifeguard stations and local Coastguard offices around the coastline.

John Astbury, Chief Coastguard says:- "Now that schools have broken up for the summer holidays, the beaches will be packed as families go away on holiday or for days out. When children go missing it can be extremely distressing for both parents and the children themselves and could have fatal consequences. The 'Sea Smart Beach Bands' are a way of reuniting children with their parents as quickly as possible before a tragedy occurs."

The MCA Sea Smart campaign, which promotes sea and beach safety to parents of young children to prevent accidents and deaths on our coastline, is not only encouraging parents to use these free beach bands but also urging parents to make sure that they and their children know what to do if the unexpected happens while at the beach by following these simple safety guidelines:

· If you see anyone in trouble, dial 999 and ask for the Coastguard 
· Check the weather and tides before you leave 
· Keep children within reach at all times... always identify a clear landmark close to where you are sitting in case children lose sight of you
· Always tie inflatables to an adult on the shoreline (including inflatable toys, rubber rings, inflatable boats, lilos, etc, which can easily drift miles out to sea with just a light breeze).
· Keep clear of cliff edges... they can be slippery when wet 
· Don't drink and drown... eating and drinking before swimming may give you cramps 

Local ‘Hero’ Nominated For Community Nurse of the Year Award

DOREEN FLANAGAN of Bootle, Merseyside has been nominated for the Dettol Community Nurse of the Year Award 2004, which was launched nationwide on June 10 by Dr Chris Steele, This Morning’s resident Doctor. The award, backed by the leading antiseptic disinfectant brand, Dettol, has been set up to reward exceptional ...continued... 

...continued...  achievements, dedication and  excellence displayed by thousands of health visitors, midwives and community nurses who work throughout the UK.

Doreen, a midwife of the Bootle area has been nominated by her friend Kathleen Morrison for her remarkable dedication. Kathleen believes that Doreen’s natural gift to help those in need makes her a shining example and a fantastic community nurse. Such is her selfless nature that for the last 9 years, she has devoted herself to the care of her elderly sister, Chris, despite having heart surgery herself.

Following the results from the public vote, the final shortlist of nominated finalists will then be submitted to a team of specialist judges that represent each nursing discipline (health visitors, community nurses and midwives) who will review the nominations and select a winner from each nursing category and the overall Dettol Community Nurse of the Year Award 2004 winner. 

The overall 2004 Dettol Community Nurse of the Year winner will be awarded with a £1,000 professional bursary, a well-deserved luxury European weekend break for two in addition to a £500 donation to a local charity of their choice. The person who nominated the winning nurse will also be awarded with a relaxing spa break.

LIVERPOOL GIRL WINS TOP MODELLING COMPETITION

TWENTY-YEAR-OLD Jade Teague, from Garston, has proved to be a cut above the rest in the North of England final of the prestigious Face of Saks 2005 modelling competition. 

Jade came out top from eleven girls in the regional finals and will now go on to represent the North of England in the Grand final on 9 September, going head to head against the Crème de La Crème of Britain's up and coming modelling talent.

Jade, who currently works for a promotion company in Liverpool, won the regional final on August 4 held at Saks Hair and Beauty in Leed. She has now made it to the last twelve in the UK from over two thousand entries.

Previous winners of the Face of Saks have gone on to secure modelling contracts with leading agencies and the competition is recognised in the industry as a driving force in discovering new talent. The UK's leading hair and beauty salon group is running the competition in conjunction with top modelling agency Models 1 who is behind the successful careers of Yasmin Le Bon, Karen Elson and Stephanie Seymour. 

Andrew Barton, International Creative Director of Saks says:- "We're delighted that Jade is coming to the Grand Final of the Face of Saks. All the contestants interviewed have shown exceptional talent but Jade really stood out. We're looking for striking girls who will complement the Saks collection 2005 - and be the inspiration behind Saks' key hair trends for the coming season."

The Grand final will take place at Saks Covent Garden. Finalists will be interviewed and styled by Saks' hairdressers before taking part in a catwalk model show with Models 1. The ultimate winner of Face of Saks will be announced on the day.

EMAIL US ALL YOUR VIEWS & NEWS TODAY