Background The importance of teaching home safety to children in Scotland has been highlighted by NHS Scotland statistics, which show 2,128 injuries to children under five happen in the home each year. Most of these accidents are preventable through improved awareness, improvements in the home environment and greater product safety.

Methods RoSPA worked in partnership with Go Safe Scotland, an online education resource, and author Linda Strachan, to produce ‘The Birthday Party’, a book aimed at children 6 years old and younger. The book was produced to highlight home safety issues in the form of a fun and engaging story. Funds were raised through various sources to be able to produce a printed copy of ‘The Birthday Party’ and allow it to be distributed to Primary One pupils in Scottish schools.

Results RoSPA have still to collect feedback on the resource from primary schools however the production of ‘The Birthday Party’ has engaged the attention of a wider audience and has appealed to those who work with children and families. Requests have come in from a number of organisations including: The Royal Hospital for Sick Children in Edinburgh, Community Safety Partnerships and Police Scotland. The production of the book has allowed RoSPA to make new partnerships with organisations they have never worked with before, helping to reach the desired target audience and risk groups of vulnerable families across the whole of Scotland.

Conclusions ‘The Birthday Party’ has been well received throughout Scotland by leading health and safety organisations and Scottish schools. The distribution of the book has allowed us to target our most vulnerable age groups. By implementing home safety issues and preventative measures in a fun and engaging way we have been able to introduce new desirable behaviour for young children. Through producing the book along with Go Safe Scotland we have been able to co-ordinate teaching notes to allow follow up sessions after reading the book with mum/dad/carer to enhance the learning and increase awareness around home safety.