Looking for a safety record

By Shaun Inguanzo
SAFETY House has for generations been a symbol of help for children facing stranger danger.
But now the tables have turned, and Safety House Victoria needs the community’s help.
Keysborough Ward councillor Roz Blades, a former state regional coordinator of the Safety House initiative, is urging former committee members to provide old records and documents to help bolster the head office’s records.
Cr Blades said Safety House Victoria had lost many records covering the 1980s when it moved to a new head office in Box Hill.
She appealed for former members, mainly parents of school children during that time, to hand in their documents so Safety House Victoria could compile a digital record.
“Some people gave their hearts and souls to Safety House,” Cr Blades said.
“It was the first major stranger danger committee, set up alongside Neighbourhood Watch.
“The idea was if you (as a kid) saw a house and it had a Safety House sticker on the front, then it was a house that was safe for you to go in to if you were under any threat.”
Cr Blades said the initiative began in Greater Dandenong at Woorana Park Primary, and throughout the 1980s many of the region’s schools had strong Safety House committees.
“The Springvale area was a very strong region,” she said.
“Wallarano Primary School had 42 members on its committee in 1980.”
Cr Blades said the initiative that was run on the volunteer efforts of parents had all but died off due to people finding less time to volunteer.
Anyone with Safety House records should contact Cr Blades on 9701 5821, or email rozzib@bigpond .net.au.