missdorothy.com will be released on Monday 8th December

Entertainer Bobby Davro has recorded a special song for Christmas with a group of London schoolchildren to raise awareness about child safety issues. Davro and six pupils from St Andrew’s Catholic Primary School in Streatham became Bobby & the Dots for the recording of ‘missdorothy.com’, which will be released on Monday 8th December to raise money for the Kids Taskforce charity. The CD will also include a cartoon of the song created by Ape productions Ltd /Animator Ashley Hampton. It will be available for sale at all major retailers and via download and distributed via Universal Music Operations.
 
“Missdorothy.com is a song about Dot Com - a freckle faced tomboy who is the Kids Taskforce mascot and features in the missdorothy.com website. Songwriter David Martin, who also wrote the Barry Manilow hit “Can’t Smile Without You”, wrote the song after hearing about the project. The Missdorothy.com website and the Learning programme are endorsed by the government, leading safety agencies and the Nelson Mandela Children's Fund (UK). It is currently being taught in many schools around the country and more are being encouraged to use it. There are over 20,000 children who visit the site each day!

 

At present there is no national standard for the information delivered to children on safety in primary or secondary schools. Sharon Doughty, the head of the Kids Taskforce is a former BBC, Sky and ITV newsreader and set up the Kids Taskforce aimed at making children’s lives safer. It's a partnership between professional footballers and Britain’s fire and police chiefs that aims to get vital safety messages to every child in the country by 2010. "We are hoping to set a national standard for the safety advice given to youngsters about everything from safety on the internet, crossing the road and healthy eating to drugs and knife crime" says Sharon.
 
By teaching youngsters how to manage risk and assist their decision making in situations of potential danger we are empowering them for their future.

Charlton Football Club

The Kids Taskforce is supporting Charlton Football Club’s campaign to teach young people about the dangers of knives and guns.

 

Charlton has just launched its ‘Street Violence Ruins Lives’ campaign and coaches will visit schools and estates across Greenwich, Bexley and Kent to talk to children and encourage them away from involvement in violence and crime.

 

In schools, coaches have already been involved in delivering the missdorothy.com and Watch Over Me learning programmes, which build confidence and help young people develop their own strategies for dealing with risk. The primary and secondary school programmes explore the dangers associated with carrying weapons on the street.

 

The Kids Taskforce - a partnership between the Association of Chief Police Officers, the Chief Fire Officers’ Association and the Professional Footballers’ Association – is committed to get these programmes to every child in the country by 2010.

 

Sharon Doughty, head of the Kids Taskforce, joined the club for the official launch of the campaign (pictured) on the pitch before the home game against Reading. A special film was shown at half time featuring interviews with the parents of Charlton fan Robert Knox, who was stabbed to death outside a bar in Sidcup. Robert was a young actor who had just finished filming the new Harry Potter movie.

More details about the campaign can be found on the special website at www.cact.org.uk/street

The Mayor of London Boris Johnson has announced a huge investment in the missdorothy.com and Watch Over Me learning programmes for young people across the capital.

Mr. Johnson made tackling youth crime his priority when he was elected Mayor and has unveiled a number of schemes aimed at young people of different ages. The biggest investment is in the missdorothy.com learning programme for Key Stage 2 primary school children.

The programme teaches personal safety messages through the cartoon character Dot Com and her friends and uses an interactive website www.missdorothy.com to support classroom lessons. The Metropolitan Police has provided almost half a million pounds in funding so that 100,000 children can take part in the programme in the next academic year.

The Met has also bought a three-year licence for the Watch Over Me programme that teaches secondary school children how to handle risks such as drugs, guns and domestic violence. The programme is made of up of three series of captivating drama that provide a stimulus for classroom discussion. Every secondary school in London will receive a set of the films and teaching aids which can be downloaded onto their servers and used in Citizenship and PSHE lessons.

Both programmes have won the support of the Department for Children, Schools and Families and are recommended as a safety resource by RoSPA.

Mr. Johnson also announced funding through the Metropolitan Police for the Kickz football scheme and 'Calling The Shots' - a programme aimed at 16 to 19-year-olds who are at risk of getting involved in youth violence.

Mr.Johnson said: “These projects are perfect examples of the youth initiatives we desperately need across London to engage young people. They offer guidance, information and most importantly steer young people away from the lure of gangs and criminal activity.
"Tackling youth crime is complex and there are no magic answers but I am determined to make London a safer city for everyone, including young people, who are frequently victims of crime. As well as more targeted policing efforts, to combat these issues we need strong community projects, which are relevant and interest young people and that widen their horizons and raise their aspirations.”

The Kids Taskforce, a charity dedicated to educating young people on personal safety, recently received a cash boost from the London Mayor, Boris Johnson when he announced a helping hand for groups aiming to reduce gun and knife crime in the City.

 

The Kids Taskforce, has also recently received support from Reliance Secure Task Management Ltd. The secure services company, impressed with the good work being carried out by the Kids Taskforce, has adopted them as their company charity.

 

Reliance Secure Task Management Ltd understand all too well the importance of security as they work with trusted partners in the criminal justice sector.

 

The company will work closely with The Kids Taskforce to raise funds and enhance their profile; they have recently supported the Kids Taskforce first anniversary celebration at the House of Lords and have now sponsored the Kids Taskforce new website.

This new website will help extend awareness of the commendable work that the Kids Taskforce are doing. The Kids Taskforce is a partnership between four organisations, ACPO (the Association of Chief Police Officers), CFOA (Chief Fire Officers Association) and PFA (Professional Footballers' Association) and the team that delivers the missdorothy.com and Watch Over Me education programmes.

 

They are working together to set a common standard for safety education in schools throughout the UK. The missdorothy.com and Watch Over Me learning programmes are endorsed by Ed Balls, Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, and are the first independent personal safety resource to win government backing. The Kids Taskforce aims to get them to every child in the UK by 2010. The programmes are delivered by teachers in the classroom and supported by local police officers, fire officers and football coaches.

 

“We will be working closely with The Kids Taskforce, supporting and raising funds for them in what ever way we can over the coming year. Diverting children from a life of crime and warning them of danger is an important corporate social responsibility for us. We understand all too well the importance of security working as we do with trusted partners in the criminal justice sector. For that reason we fully support the work being done by the Kids Taskforce to educate young people and improve their safety and awareness of risk.” Said Simon Marshall the Operations Director for Reliance Secure Task Management Ltd.

 

“The Kids Taskforce aims to work with trusted business partners such as Reliance to achieve its goal of reaching every child in Britain by 2010. The funding announced by the Mayor will allow us to roll out the programmes across London, which is a huge step forward. Working in partnership with others is central to the aims of the Kids Taskforce and Reliance's help with our website and events has been invaluable”, said Sharon Doughty, Head of the Kids Taskforce.

Home Secretary Jacqui Smith at the launch with pupils and representatives from fire, police and football who are supporting the scheme.

Home Secretary and Redditch MP Jacqui Smith has launched a safety programme in her constituency that teaches young people how to handle risks including guns, knives, fire and drugs.

She was joined at the event at Woodfield Middle School in Redditch by representatives from West Mercia Police, Hereford and Worcester Fire Service and Aston Villa Football Club, who are all supporting the scheme.

The school is the first in Worcestershire to use the missdorothy.com programme – a holistic safety scheme that’s won the support of Ofsted inspectors and PSHE experts. It’s the only independent personal safety resource to be endorsed by the Department for Children, Families and Schools (DCFS) and has also been recommended by RoSPA as an effective safety tool.

Founder Sharon Doughty said: “The programme is built around an imaginary nine-year-old girl called Miss Dorothy Com – known to fans as Dot. The children start by learning about Dot and are shown by her example how to value their own feelings. Most importantly, they are taught to recognise the red flags that signal dangerous situations and how to blow the whistle.”

The programme is a sustained approach to learning and switches from colourful workbooks to broadcast quality soap-style dramas for teenagers that provide a stimulus for classroom debate.

The missdorothy.com programme has won the support of fire and police chiefs and the Professional Footballers' Association, who are all working to help deliver its crucial messages about keeping children healthy and safe.

Together they’ve formed the Kids Taskforce, a partnership committed to setting a national standard for risk management and ensuring that every young person receives the same quality of information by completing the missdorothy.com programme.

Speaking about the launch Jacqui Smith, the local MP for Redditch, said: “Keeping children safe is a top priority for schools. The Kids Taskforce provides a consistent child-friendly approach to safety education through the missdorothy.com programme and Watch Over Me soap opera. This is supported by the police, fire service and football in the community, which makes the programme very effective, and I am delighted to launch it in my constituency and in Woodfield Middle School in particular.”

The programme has already been a huge success in South Yorkshire, where it has been rolled out to every primary school. The Metropolitan police has also invested in the scheme for 100,000 primary school children across every London borough. It has also bought a licence for the ‘Watch Over me’ films so they can be used by every secondary school in the capital.

Lisa Guest and Kathryn Harvey, assistant head teachers at Woodfield Middle School, said staff welcomed the opportunity to use a coherent ‘whole school’ programme to tackle the many issues faced by students.

Lisa said: “Pupils have changed, society has changed, but resources haven’t…..until we met Dot!”

Police officers and fire fighters are using an advert starring BBC newsreader Nicholas Owen to raise awareness about bullying in schools throughout the UK.
 
They are marking this year’s Anti-Bullying Week by visiting schools and showing the 30-second film, which was made by the Kids Taskforce and also stars its head Sharon Doughty.
 
Sharon was a newsreader at Sky and ITN before giving up her television career to run the children’s charity missdorothy.com.  Together with police and fire chiefs and the Professional Footballers’ Association she’s formed the Kids Taskforce, an association committed to ensuring every child in the UK receives vital advice about staying safe.
 
Nicholas and Sharon made the film to highlight the importance for children to tell someone when they’re being bullied.  They both repeat the message “see it, get help, STOP IT”.
 
Police officers and fire fighters have been asked by the Kids Taskforce to take the film into schools and pass on the message to youngsters.
 
Sharon said: “Bullying goes on every day all over the country.  Some children are afraid to go to school and feel they’ve got no-one to turn to.
 
“We want to empower victims to speak up for themselves and realise they can fight back by telling someone what’s going on.  Too many young people suffer in silence because they think telling an adult will make the situation worse.”
 
The Anti-Bullying Alliance’s Anti-Bullying Week takes place from 19-23 November and further details are available on their website at www.anti-bullyingalliance.org.uk.  The film can be viewed and downloaded from www.kidstaskforce.com.

May 17th 2007: Kids Taskforce awards were presented to Linda Mitchell and Jayne Atkinson by Police Minister Tony McNulty and Communites Local Government Minister John Healy for their outstanding support of the Watch Over Me soap opera series.

More than 100 groups and individuals were honoured for their work in helping children stay safe at the inaugural Kids Taskforce awards which were held in London on 17th May.

 

The awards marked the launch of the Kids Taskforce, a partnership between missdorothy.com, fire and police chiefs and the Professional Footballers’ Association. Together they aim to ensure that every child in the country receives important safety advice and information.

 

The Association of Chief Police Officers, Chief Fire Officers Association and the PFA signed a unique agreement in support of the taskforce’s aims. They’ll work together with missdorothy.com to get vital safety messages across to young people.

 

Home Office Minister Vernon Coaker and Fire Minister Angela Smith presented the first Kids Taskforce awards at London Fire Headquarters in Lambeth.

 

Later in the day missdorothy.com patron, actress Lynda Bellingham, handed out awards at a special ceremony at the House of Commons, joined by MPs John Healey and Tony McNulty.

 

And more awards were presented at a reception at the House of Lords where television news presenters Alastair Stewart and Nick Owen addressed guests. The special agreement between the PFA, CFOA, ACPO and missdorothy.com was also officially signed.

 

Five schools that already use the missdorothy.com learning programme received awards. Youngsters travelled to London from as far as Wales and Sunderland to receive their prizes and were treated to a trip on the London Eye.

 

They also stopped off in Downing Street to deliver an award for Prime Minister Tony Blair, who was honoured for his continued support of the missdorothy.com programme.

 

The Kids Taskforce has been created to support the government’s ‘Every Child Matters’ agenda. It aims to encourage a joined-up approach to child safety across the country so that every child receives the same quality of information and advice.

Britain’s first Kids Taskforce is to recognise more than 100 children and community leaders for their outstanding achievements in protecting schoolchildren.

 

The Fire and Home Office ministers will present the awards at London Fire Headquarters in Lambeth. Children at one school being honoured reported the abduction of a 10-year-old child by flagging down a police car and handing over details of the incident.

 

The schools receiving awards, have all been studying the missdorothy.com learning programme that teaches children how to manage risks in life including fire, bullying, child predators, drugs and gun and knife crime.

 

The launch of the Kids Taskforce comes at a time of increasing concern over how to improve child protection, said the Head of the New Taskforce Sharon Doughty.

 

The learning programme developed by Ms Doughty – a former newsreader - uses a cartoon character called Dot Com to spread the message in primary schools and the cast of a teen soap called ‘Watch Over Me’ in secondary schools.

 

Later in the day the Treasury Minister John Healey will present the adults with their awards at the House of Commons with the Kids Taskforce Patron Lynda Bellingham.

 

Ministers will receive their awards at a reception hosted by Lord Ahmed when the President of the Association of Chief Police Officers, the President of the Chief Fire Officers Association and the Chief Executive of the Professional Footballers’ Association will sign a unique agreement laying out their support for the Taskforce.

Awards are also being given to Prime Minister Tony Blair, Chancellor Gordon Brown, former Home Secretary David Blunkett, Home Office Minister Vernon Coaker and Fire Minister Angela Smith for their support of the programme.

 

Mr. Brown, who has also backed the learning programme, said: “All children have a right to grow up knowing that they are safe. As well as ensuring that all adults respect and care for children we must empower them with the knowledge and skills to make the world their own. The Kids Taskforce and missdorothy.com have an important part to play in making that happen.”

 

Cath Lawson, head of Hexthorpe Primary School in South Yorkshire, where pupils foiled the abduction, said: “Incredibly a group of year six children saw a child being snatched at a bus-stop and had the confidence to flag down a police car. They said they knew what to do because of the missdorothy.com programme.”

 

Kids Taskforce head Sharon Doughty said, “It is incredibly important that children are taught to manage life’s risks for themselves. You can’t watch you children all the time as recent events have so tragically shown us.”