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National Missing Children’s Day is Monday the 25th May, and to coincide with this, and the launch of the new Child Rescue Alert service, a new child safety pack has just hit the market which is set to ensure parents are prepared should their child go missing.
Used widely in the US, kIDpacks, from Surrey-based organisation Local Kids Safety, ensure that parents have an accurate record of all of their child’s details, such as their height, weight, photos and fingerprints, in one safe document which is easily accessible.
Victoria and Daniel Shortland, the duo behind this innovative new product, explain more:
“In the UK a child is reported missing every 3 minutes. This worrying statistic means that over 140,000 children go missing in the UK every year, with only a tiny proportion of cases hitting the media. In such an emergency, time is of the essence, and one of the main things that parents can do is prepare themselves so that they can act as quickly as possible should the unthinkable happened and their child goes missing. When passing critical and accurate information to the police about your child, every second counts, and kIDpack’s enable you to have all the vital information needed easy to hand and in a format that can be passed on straight away”.
Each pack contains:
- A booklet to document your child’s medical and personal information, allergies and medication, blood type, height, weight, hair and eye colour, hobbies and interest etc….
- A fingerprint chart along with a safe, non-toxic ink strip.
- A page of comprehensive safety tips.
- A chart to denote any unique or distinguishing physical features.
- Two Shoe Numbers stickers for useful contact telephone numbers.
- A plastic A6 pouch to store the completed form safely.
The Shoe Numbers stickers are an innovative new product which record parents/guardians’ contact details and can be stuck to the inside of a child’s shoe, ensuring if they are found then parents can be contacted as quickly as possible.
“It’s really important for parents to educate their children about safety in a non-threatening manner so as not to scare them,” continues Victoria. “kIDPacks also contain a booklet with valuable hints and tips which can be passed on to their child to further minimise the risk that they will go missing.”
The Shortlands founded Local Kids Safety in 2013 in response to the shocking statistics that a child goes missing every 3 minutes. As parents themselves to a 4 year old boy, they understood the blind panic that parents and carers can feel in such situations, which led to the development of a tool to make remembering all the vital information as easy as possible.
“It’s commonly acknowledged that the US is 20 years ahead of the UK in terms of child safety,” explains Daniel. “Child ID kits have been widely used for many years, and are in fact recommended by the FBI. Local Kids Safety are firmly committed to providing children and families with the information and tools that they need to stay educated, informed, and prepared”.
For this reason the enterprising duo will also donate 10p from every sale to The Missing People Charity.
Additionally the kIDpacks are made in the United Kingdom and are assembled by Hampshire-based Yateley Industries who employ people will learning difficulties and disabilities.
Release ID: 82446