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Britain's gas
hotspots - new figures identify the most dangerous postcodes in the
country
TO mark Gas Safety Week, 16
September to 22 September 2013, Great Britain's gas safety
authority; Gas Safe Register; has launched an interactive gas map,
which identifies the most dangerous postcodes in the country. The
map:-
staygassafe.co.uk, reveals how many unsafe
gas appliances have been found lurking in an area, how many
unregistered gas fitters have preyed on the public and how many gas
incidents and emergencies have happened; it is the 1st time that
gas data has been compared across postcodes.
The data, compiled by Gas Safe Register, which has inspected over
11,000 homes in the North West in the last 3 years, found that 16%
of homes had an unsafe gas appliance. Appliances in 5% of North West
homes were immediately dangerous and if left unchecked were at risk
of causing a gas fire, explosion, leak or carbon monoxide (CO)
poisoning. The map also pinpoints over 20,000 gas emergency callouts
in the North West attended by appropriate regional gas networks.
Of the cities in the North West, Manchester was one of the most
dangerous, where 28% of homes were identified as unsafe, followed by
Blackpool, where 22% of homes were found to have a dangerous gas
appliance. In comparison, Liverpool, was found to be one of the
safest cities in Britain, where just over 5% of homes had a
dangerous gas appliance.
People in Preston are also being caught out by cowboy unregistered
gas fitters, pretending to be legal engineers. Of those illegal jobs
investigated in the North West, 60% left victims' homes unsafe and
22% were so dangerous that the Register had to turn off the gas
appliance immediately.
Alarmingly, 1 in 3 gas customers in Great Britain; around 7.69
million households; admit they've never had their gas appliances
checked or maintained. This is despite 82% of people recognising
that they should do it in order to protect themselves from gas
dangers6.
Russell Kramer, chief executive for Gas Safe Register, said:-
"Gas safety is a life or death matter and something that shouldn't
be ignored. People are aware of the potential risks of unsafe gas
work and they know what they should be doing to keep themselves
safe, but as our research has found, not everyone is acting on that
information. This is why we have launched the gas map. It is the
first time that data on unsafe gas appliances and illegal gas work
has been compared across postcodes in Great Britain. We want people
to realise that gas safety is something that they should take
seriously and by bringing it to their doorstep it makes it harder to
ignore."
With 31 people dead and 1,091 injured in Great Britain from gas
related incidents in the last 3 years due to badly installed,
repaired and maintained gas appliances, Gas Safe Register is marking
Gas Safety Week by encouraging people to make sure all of their gas
appliances are safe to use.
Russell continued:- "We hope to see millions of people using
the gas map during and beyond Gas Safety Week to get a better
understanding of how they can protect themselves. Some areas are
more at risk, but even in safer areas there is no room for
complacency. You only need to enter your postcode to find out
localised information about your area. You can also sign up for a
free reminder service to get your appliances checked, so that you
don't forget to do this vital and life saving check every year, and
search for registered engineers. Our messages this Gas Safety Week
are simple; get your appliances checked every year, sign up for our
reminder service and only use a Gas Safe registered engineer. It
could save yours and your family's lives."
Follow Gas Safe Register's advice this Gas
Safety Week:-
1. Visit
staygassafe.co.uk to find
out about the gas dangers and risks in your area
2. Get all of the gas appliances in your home safety checked and
maintained annually by a Gas Safe registered engineer – this will
ensure that your appliances continue to work safely
3. Sign up to have a gas safety check reminder sent to you annually
so that you never forget to keep you and your family safe
4. Don't fall victim to illegal gas work - only use a Gas Safe
registered engineer and ask to see their Gas Safe ID card.
5. Check gas appliances for warning signs that they are not working
correctly. A lazy yellow flame, black marks or stains around the
appliance, or too much condensation in the room are all signs that
your appliances aren't safe.
To find a Gas Safe registered engineer and for more general gas
safety advice visit:-
GasSafeRegister.co.uk
or call:- 0800 408 5500.
Dogs Trust launches results of its
17th Annual Stray Dog Survey
THE 17th annual Stray Dog Survey, conducted by
GfK NOP, on behalf of Dogs Trust, the UK's largest dog welfare
charity, reveals that the total number of stray dogs picked up by
Local Authorities in the Granada; region has decreased by 1% since
last year (2012). The total number of stray dogs in the
region has decreased from:- 16,558 in 2012 to:- 16,393 in 2013,
reducing the number of dogs being picked up by Local Authorities
each day to 45. The overall number of strays collected in the UK by
Local Authorities also saw a reduction with 111,986 homeless hounds
picked up in the last 12 months, a 6% decrease on the previous year.
Angela Madigan, Dogs Trust Merseyside Education
Officer comments:- "This year's Stray Dog Survey shows good
news for the Granada region. We work very closely with the Local
Authorities who should be commended on their efforts to encourage
responsible dog ownership through neutering, microchipping and
education in a very difficult economic climate. However, Local
Authorities are still struggling to cope with the number of strays
and are therefore forced to put some dogs to sleep. Any dog
destroyed for want of a home is one dog too many. We hope to
continue our work with Local Authorities through our extensive
campaigns to help them to tackle the issue of stray dogs and ensure
that the number continues to decline." |
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Major push from the NSPCC to stop
abuse in Sefton before it starts
THE new CEO of the NSPCC, Peter Wanless, says
that we can achieve a massive reduction in child abuse if more is
done to prevent it before it starts.
The claim comes as the children's charity launches its 'Now I
Know' campaign, asking people in to help put ChildLine in every
primary school across the region with visits once every two years to
talk to children about abuse, how to protect themselves and where to
get help if they need it.
The pioneering ChildLine Schools Service is a major shift towards
preventative work designed to equip children with the knowledge they
need to act with confidence if they fear abuse, before it does
terrible and lasting harm. This builds on the charity's other
services which now increasingly focus on preventative work with
adults, so the risks of abuse are removed or acted upon more
quickly.
NSPCC Chief Executive, Peter Wanless, said:-
"People in this country do not want to tolerate child abuse. We no
longer need to convince them of the suffering it leads to, or the
costs to future lives; Jimmy Savile's crimes are one shocking
illustration of the consequences when people do not speak up and are
not heard, for whatever reason. But we must now inspire everyone to
believe that such horrors can be prevented and that they can help.
Protection after the event, vital as it is, can't attack the root
causes of the problem. Like us, many professionals and organisations
are developing new thinking on prevention and the future tide of
child abuse cannot be turned without this. By helping children
understand and identify abuse in an age appropriate way, we can
encourage them to speak out earlier and protect themselves and
others from the devastating effects of abuse. We want children to be
able to say 'Now I Know' – and not, 'I
wish I had known'. And we want everyone to play their part by
looking out for children and reinforcing the messages about speaking
up."
NSPCC research shows that, on average, at least 2 children in every
primary classroom will have suffered some form of abuse or neglect.
But ChildLine, a service provided by the NSPCC, says the majority of
children who contact its helpline are aged over 11 and often talk
about abuse that happened months or even years earlier.
The ChildLine Schools Service, which is delivered by trained
volunteers and provided for free to all primary schools across the
UK, aims to help children aged 9 to 11 understand abuse. They will give
them the confidence to talk about it, the knowledge to prevent it
and the courage to find help if they ever need it.
The need for a preventative service of this kind is underlined by a
new study conducted for the charity by YouGov, which shows that 36%
of adults in the North West taking part in the survey think they
would have been able to recognise abuse if it was happening to them
at primary school and 34% claim that they would have known who to
ask for help if they were being abused when they were aged 9 to 113.
82% of adults in the North West thought that educating children aged
9 to 11 in an age appropriate way about what abuse is and where to get
help in a school environment could be a powerful weapon against
child abuse.
The Service has already visited 3,513 children in 41 schools in
Sefton, and has proved incredibly popular with parents and teachers.
99% of schools across the UK who provided feedback in 2012/13
claimed that their pupils' knowledge of child abuse and bullying was
enhanced as a result, whilst 91% stated that their pupils were now
more aware of who to talk to if they felt unsafe.
Peter Wanless added:- "Child abuse costs the UK billions of
pounds every year, and that's without taking into account the human
costs. As we know, the National Audit Office estimates that only 6%
of public expenditure is focused on stopping problems from emerging
in the 1st place. Through Now I Know we are responding to the
vital shift 'upstream' to prevention with a unique UK-wide
service that we know works and will enable us to empower younger
children to prevent abuse from happening."
To support the campaign, visit:-
nowiknow.org.uk. |
