A brave new world

The recent spate of crimes against children has prompted more than a little rumbling at Parliament House. Now TCF manufacturers are set to introduce preventative measures too, as Assia Benmedjdoub discovered.

All little Sophie Delezio wanted to do was spend a quite evening in the northern beach suburb of Seaforth, Sydney. Instead, in early May of this year, the five-year-old was flung 10 metres along a pedestrian crossing after an elderly driver ploughed his vehicle into her stroller. Some three months after the event, Delezio's story is continuing to fuel some serious debate over child safety in New South Wales and Australia. Only last week, politicians met to discuss the prospects of changing licensing laws for elderly drivers in this country with commentators slinging some hard-hitting words in the case both for and against.
But it's not just public figures that are locking in on the debate. Local and international manufacturers are set to drive the mainstream appeal of safety apparel and accessories for children with a range of special bags, uniforms and tracking systems set to hit the market in 2006.
The Retail Doctor managing director Brian Walker believes growing concern for child safety in Australia and worldwide has prompted greater consumer demand for these types of products.
"Parents are becoming more aware of the risks their children face, mainly due to media reports of several high profile child-related accidents and the fact that they have so much more information available to them today," he adds. "So there is most certainly a need for safety innovations for children and not just in terms of childrenswear."
He also believes that while safety concerns are a strong motivator behind these developments, they are also part of a wider trend in children's clothing as more clothing brands, including Trelise Cooper and Frankie B, create new kidswear lines.
"The growth is spurred by the increase in purchasing power of the parents and the need to provide the best for their children as well as the increasing sophistication of the children's apparel, " he said. Children are having an increasing say in what they wear and are becoming fashion purchase influencers at a comparatively younger age"
Latching onto this trend, Korea B-Safety International Corporation, a safety product manufacturer and exporter, has already contacted children's welfare organisations in a move to break into the Australian market. In an email to Child Safety Awareness (Australia), the manufacturer proposed a business partnership with the organisation to introduce safety vests and devices for children.
The company also looks to fill a gap in the local market by wholesaling a glowing backpack specifically manufactured for children. The backpacks features a bright EL light sewn into the shoulder straps and along the front of the pack which aims to alert passing motorists to the child's movements. A switch also allows the child to choose whether the EL light remains constant or flash intermittent and can even be ordered with a special personal alarm.
"This type of alarm is not used to attack one who threatens you nor bring him or her under your control," a spokesperson for the company said. "It produces a warning sound in dangerous situations to surprise the intimidator and draw attention to him or her so that she or he couldn't commit any crimes."
While the company is still in the preliminary stages of expanding into Australia, Schoolsafe, a local manufacturer which plans to create a range of safety uniforms for children, is looking to launch into the market later this year. Due to ongoing licensing discussions, the company cannot disclose any product details but it is understood that it will also product reflective apparel to attract the eyes of passing motorists.
Child Safety Awareness spokesperson, Bruce Elwood believes both moves are warranted considering the recent spate of child pedestrian accidents.
"Parents are born to worry," he says. "Anything that contributes to promote child safety and deliver positive social outcomes should certainly be considered by parents and their children. Kids don't come with a safety manual."
But Elwood also warns such measures should not replace the "value" of educating children on safety practices and skills.
Elwood's comments come as an apparel manufacturer in the US, Lauren Scott California, plans to rollout a line of children's pajamas imbedded with radio frequency identification (RFID) tags in December. The tags, traditionally used to track the shipment of goods and products, are small silicon chips with antennas that enable users to receive and respond to queries from and RFID transceiver or reader. Readers that are placed around the child's home are able to scan the tags within a 30-foot radius and an alarm will be instantly triggered when boundaries are breached.
Lauren Scott believes they have great potential to safeguard children from predators.
"After researching the horrific statistics of child predators living in our communities, coupled with the epidemic rate of child abductions in the US, it was clear that there was a real need for RFID-embedded clothing. As a designer and a mother, I felt compelled to do something and as a company we did," she said.
Reportedly hitting Target stores early next year, the pajamas and home installed system - with RFID readers and a low frequency encoder - will be priced at $US500 ($A665).
While such safety apparel has yet to form in the Australian market, Elwood believes the technology, coupled with good safety education, would work well in certain situations.
"It would depend on the child's mode of behavior, the area they live in and whether it's a high violence suburb," he says. "To suggest that this type of product is unnecessary is suggesting that a parent's fear is unwarranted when it is. We receive calls with stories that are enough to make your hair turn grey.
"My other personal view is that I don't think that we are equipping our children with the necessary personal skills to suggest that they need to be tracked to ensure their safety. There are certainly dangers when they become too sheltered. We should not forgo teaching them the skills and abilities they need to participate in society safely."
While the moral value of these products is an issue of hot debate, Brian Walker believes consumer demand for these kinds of products will continue to escalate.
"Margin attractive product with increasing demand makes an attractive proposition for this category. As children's safety in an increasingly urban community is becoming more of an issue so too will the demand for these types of products."



Breakout Box

:Children's safety: the official word
The Australian Bureau of Statistics reports that between 1995 and 2004, the rate of kidnapping/abduction increased from 2.5 to 3.8 victims per 100,000 population. It also found that the rate of kidnapping of persons aged 19 or less was twice as high as those aged 20 or over. A further 62 per cent of people were abducted by offenders not known to the victim. In 2004, of the 768 people who were kidnapped or abducted, 69 percent were female, while the rate for females aged 10-19 years was 17.5 per 100,000.

The number of children reported abused and neglected in Australia has also risen from 49,721 in 1990/91 to 115,000 in 2001/02. According to the Kids First Foundation, one in 170 Australian children under nine years is a proven victim of abuse and neglect.

The Schoolsafe organisation reports that pedestrian injury is a leading cause of child injury death in Australia. Every week, a child pedestrian is killed and for each child that dies, 25 children will be admitted to hospital. Pedestrian injuries account for one in five injury deaths for five to 14-year-olds and are second only to car passenger deaths for this age group.