Kids on the alert as Buckie High health day highlights dangers of vaping
THE dangers and drawbacks of vaping were in the spotlight for Buckie area P7 youngsters when they attended this year’s Community Alert Day (CAD).
Hosted again by Buckie Community High School (BCHS) the event kickstarts the school’s transition programme for pupils moving from primary school to S1 before the summer holidays. Around 150 youngsters attended and were organised into House groups for the day.
The theme of vaping was selected as the centrepiece of this year’s CAD due to the national prominence and debate issues surrounding the practice have created.
Held on Tuesday, June 11, the morning got under way with a performance from Out of the Darkness (OOTD) theatre company with half the year group then heading for workshops run by the Coastguard, the police and fire service as well as Exchange Counselling Service, who focused on mental health and wellbeing.
While this was going on, the other half of the year group got stuck in to some taster sessions highlighting the various sports and activities clubs available at the school.
After lunch, the groups swapped over. In the evening the kids’ parents and carers were invited along to the school.
BCHS depute rector Moira Taylor, who co-ordinated the organising team, hailed the day as a great success.
She said: “It went really well, we were lucky that the rain didn’t come too much.
“They were really excited and the new workshop by Exchange Counselling Service which focused on mental health, went well. The pupils also know some of the emergency services people who were at the Community Alert Day as the visit their schools.
“It was also exciting for them to meet new people from the other primary schools and see who is going to be in their Houses when they come to Buckie High.
“The community Alert Day is part of our transition programme for P7s but it is also about keeping them safe in their communities. The themes and workshops are all tailored to the needs of this area.
“For example, a lot of the kids go dooking so we had the Coastguard in to talk about water safety.”
Buckie Co-op were thanked for their generosity in providing water and fruit for the participants.
Each pupil who attended will receive a PE kitbag and a goody bag containing a calculator and other maths equipment.
This is the last year Mrs Taylor will be co-ordinating CAD and she will be handing over the baton to Councillor Sonya Warren and Mel Smith.
CAD was first held back in 2011 and is believed to be the only one of its kind in Moray. It was the brainchild of highly respected and inspirational football coach, the late David 'Parro' Findlay. The aim since that first session has remained to raise awareness of the dangers of drugs and alcohol and to encourage youngsters adopt healthy, active lifestyles.
It has since run annually part from a two-year break over 2020 and 2021 enforced by Covid restrictions.
