Cala urges Stoke Mandeville children to ‘stay safe and stay away’ from building sites
Cala Homes Chiltern visited Stoke Mandeville Combined school to talk to children about the homebuilding industry and educate them about the dangers of playing in and around construction sites.
The pupils enjoyed an interactive session that covered the history of building houses and the variety of career opportunities within the industry. There was also a stark warning about the dangers of entering construction areas unsupervised.
Kim Pointon-Taylor, Director of Group Marketing at Cala, visited the Stoke Mandeville Combined school to discuss how Cala keeps its nearby Arabella Park development safe, with children able to try on a range of protective clothing.
Stay Safe, Stay Away also provides a range of curriculum-based activities, including designing a site safety poster and writing a news article.
The initiative is a core part of Cala Homes Community Pledge, which is the housebuilder’s commitment to bring meaningful investment to its local communities.
Kim said: “The Stay Safe, Stay Away programme is designed to spread the message to children that construction sites are not somewhere to play around.
"Although we ensure all Cala sites are secure, young people must be aware of the dangers of entering a construction area, so they don’t put themselves or their friends in harm’s way.
“The message is a serious one; however, we hope that our session and activities are fun and allow children to relate to the topic.
“Another aim of this initiative is to bring to life at the grassroots level how new homes are developed and the important role that housebuilders play in creating sustainable new communities.
"It was also great to highlight the great variety of jobs involved in building homes, from land buying and construction to sustainability, which the children thoroughly enjoyed.
“It was a fantastic session, and the children were incredibly enthusiastic and engaged with Stay Safe, Stay Away. We hope they take lots away from the session.”
Elieen Stewart, headteacher at Stoke Mandeville Combined school, said: "We greatly appreciated Cala Homes' recent session on site safety at our Primary School.
"As a headteacher, it's crucial to ensure that children are aware of the potential hazards around building sites, and Cala Homes did an excellent job of conveying this message.
"The children gained valuable insights into the various roles within the construction industry, but most importantly, they learned how to stay safe."