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Dear School Principal,
Westmeath Libraries is delighted to take part in the 2023 summer reading programme Summer Stars. We would appreciate your support in encouraging your students and their parents to take part. Join us for an online Storytelling session with the wonderful Pat Ryan as we launch this year's Summer Stars. Pat will have you all entranced with his marvellous stories, from traditional fairy tales to scary legends, you never know what tale is next...Suitable for classes to attend, aimed at ages 8 to 12. To register see https://westmeath.spydus.ie/cgi-bin/spydus.exe/FULL/WPAC/EVSESENQ/191360131/33039353,1 Summer Stars is the free national reading programme for children of all ages. It takes place in all public libraries throughout the country, from June 12th until the end of August. The reading adventure encourages children to read over their summer holidays, to enjoy the fun and pleasure of reading and participate in events and activities at their local library. Children who participate receive a card to record the books they read and get recognition and encouragement for each step of their reading adventure. The Summer Stars at your local library provides the whole family with an opportunity to explore the full range of events and facilities which are available, including story time sessions, children’s activities, access to talking books and games, workshops, computers and internet access, and of course children’s books for all ages. Reading during the summer helps children to maintain and improve their vocabulary and their reading and literacy skills. Voluntary reading over the summer can help establish a lifelong love of reading. Children are asked to register for the programme at their local library and pick up a reading card. Remember, membership of the library is free and there are no fines or fees when borrowing books from your local library. To find out more visit www.westmeathculture.ie Don’t forget that as a library member remember, children who struggle with reading will also have access to Borrowbox- this enables children to access audiobooks or change the fonts and backgrounds on ebooks to overcome some of the barriers they face. Younger children and their families who may have language barriers can also access http://www.lote4kids.com/uk-westmeath-county-council/ Wishing you all a relaxing summer break, Fiona Shortt Librarian, Mullingar Library, Mullingar, Co. Westmeath, N91 FH4N. Telephone: +353 44 9332221 | Website: www.westmeathculture.ie TO: All Principals, for sharing with parents, guardians and staff FROM: Dr Paul Kavanagh, HSE Tobacco Free Ireland RE: Vaping among children and young people DATE29/05/2023 Vaping is an emerging risk to the health of children and young people. The purpose of this communication from the HSE is to better inform and support parents and guardians to protect children and young people from the harms of vaping. Vaping means using an electronic cigarette (E-cigarette). E-cigarettes are battery-powered devices. They heat nicotine mixed with flavourings and other chemicals to create an aerosol that the user inhales. Trends in smoking and vaping among children and young people Parents, guardians, teachers and schools play an important role in protecting children and young people from smoking. Smoking among children and young people aged 10-17 years decreased from almost 1-in-4 in 1998 to 1-in-20 in 2018. This is a huge achievement, which puts children and young people on a course for good health throughout their lives. Vaping has become more common for adults in recent years. Almost 1-in-20 people aged 15 years and older in Ireland vape. Most of these people smoke or have smoked in the past. Vaping has also become more common among children and young people. Data from 2018 shows that that about 1-in-10 children and young people aged 12 to 17 years old used an E-cigarette in the last 30 days. Data focused on 16 year olds, found 1-in-5 were using E-cigarettes in 2019 which is double what it was in 2015. More up-to-date Irish data is due to be published later in 2023. Based on these recent trends, we expect this will confirm a further increase in E-cigarette use among children and young people in Ireland. Risks of harm caused by vaping among children and young people Vaping is harmful for children and young people for many reasons: E-cigarette use has been linked with acute harms including poisonings, burns, fractures, lung injury and asthma exacerbations. Early evidence links E-cigarettes use to cardiovascular and respiratory tissue damage. E-cigarettes often contain nicotine, which is addictive and leads to dependence. Children and young people are especially vulnerable to the effects of nicotine on their developing brains including nicotine addiction, mood disorders, and lowering of impulse control. Other drugs such as alcohol, synthetic cannabinoids, and opiates can be added to E-liquids and consumed through vaping. Finally, children and young people who use E-cigarettes are more likely to start smoking compared to those who never used E-cigarettes. Longer-term health effects of vaping are uncertain at this point in time. Regulating to better protect children and young people from the harms of vaping In 2022, the drafting of the Public Health (Tobacco and Nicotine Inhaling Products) Bill was approved by government. The Bill will ban the sale of E-cigarettes to those under the age of 18 and strengthen regulation of the retail of tobacco and E-cigarette products. We expect the Bill to be brought forward into the legislative programme soon. Support for parents, guardians and teachers to protect children and young people from the harms of vaping Parents, guardians and teachers have been in touch with the HSE for advice on how to protect children and young people from the harms of vaping. Including E-cigarettes in substance misuse policies and procedures is an important step which many schools have taken to protect children and young people. A range of resources for schools from the HSE Education Programme were updated and enhanced to include new information on E-cigarettes. Links are provided at the end of this document. The HSE encourages parents and guardians to discuss vaping with their children and young people. A ‘QUIT4Youth’ Resource has recently been developed for local HSE Health and Wellbeing services to support them in their response to the needs of young people who smoke and use E-cigarettes. The HSE is working on further resources to support parents and guardians. We will monitor this situation and continue to develop our response, resources and supports. We will continue to work with parents and guardians, schools, the Department of Education, Department of Health and all stakeholders to ensure we protect children and young people from the harms of smoking and E-cigarettes. Links to information and resources - https://www.hse.ie/eng/about/who/tobaccocontrol/resources/e-cigarette-resources.html Yours Sincerely Dr Paul Kavanagh, Martina Blake MB, BCh, BAO, MSc, FFPHMI, MCIRN 021024 Public Health Medicine Advisor National Lead HSE Tobacco Free Ireland Programme HSE Tobacco Free Ireland Programme We were delighted to welcome The Milltownpass Tidy Towns Committee to officially open our Outdoor Classroom on Friday last. Months of hard work has gone into this project and we express our sincere gratitude to all involved from Milltownpass Tidy Towns, who gave their time and expertise to this wonderful project. We also express our thanks to Milltownpassive Builds for their work. Thanks also to 5th and 6th class for their great fundraising which helped purchase the wall climbing steps. Finally thank you to Ms Bermingham who did tremendous work in collaborating with all the relevant groups to bring this project to life! fRom      National Parents Council Primary would like to offer parents of Primary School Children an opportunity to take part in one of our virtual training programmes on Internet Safety for Parents.
This session aims to give you information and skills to be able to engage in your children’s online lives. It covers the benefits and risks of the internet and provides hints and tips for parents; helping children be effective, responsible and safer Internet users. These include open communication and setting rules and boundaries with children, which are important aspects of keeping them safe online, as well as in every other aspect of their lives. This session also explores cyber-bullying and how we can help our children learn how to deal with cyber-bullying situations. If you would be interested in attending (virtually) one of these sessions please register your details here. https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/Internet-Safety-April-2023 |
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