Beaches and cliffs safety warning to Newbury school pupils

The Coast Safe scheme aims to prevent tragedies such as the one which overtook Upper Wootton teenager George Frewer in July 2007.
Today (Friday), the safety message will be driven home to Year 11 pupils at Park House School in Newbury in a visit being hosted by head of year Lesley Caswell.
Project spokeswoman Beverley Hill said: “I understand from one of our campsites near Newquay that a lot of students from the school have booked to visit Newquay after their GCSEs this year.
“I feel it’s really important that it’s brought to their attention that in 2009 two teenage boys died in Newquay from cliff falls, the same summer two other young men were seriously injured from cliff falls. All the young men had been drinking.”
George Frewer fell from cliffs in Polzeath, Cornwall, on his 17th birthday after a night celebrating with friends.
Although he had been drinking, the coroner said the alcohol level in his body was not so high that it would necessarily have contributed to his fall.
Nevertheless his mother Caroline Frewer said from the family home yesterday (Wednesday) that she welcomed any initiative aimed at preventing a similar tragedy, whatever the cause.
Ms Hill said: “Since these very tragic deaths we have worked very hard, through a multi agency partnership, to help young people stay safe while visiting Newquay. However there is only so much we can do to keep them safe – a lot of the responsibility for their safety lies with themselves and their own behaviour.
“We’ve developed ‘Coast Safe’ - a scheme to raise awareness amongst young people of how to stay safe in a seaside resort which is delivered, totally voluntarily, by Geoff and Chris Brown, who have a lifetime background in education and were both serving members of H.M. Coastguard in Cornwall for 25 years.
“Coast Safe is a crucial part of our work to help keep young people safe and we target it specifically to areas where we know young people are visiting Newquay from.”
She added: “We don’t want to spoil young people’s fun - we want them to have a great time but more than that we want them to stay safe, respect our resort and return home to their families and friends.”
The team aims to visit other West Berkshire school to drive home the safety message before the summer holidays.
An online safety pack is available at www.cornwall.gov.uk/default.aspx?page=27875