BALLYMORE National School is celebrating today after one of its students was named the FBD Farm Safe School regional champion for Ulster.
Conor is a 6th class pupil in Ballymore and was chosen after his name was put forward for the award.
Ballymore National School is currently taking part in the Farm Safe Schools pilot programme which aims to kickstart farm safety conversations in classrooms nationwide.
Each month one dedicated Champion is selected from each region and awarded a certificate of achievement and a family pass to Dublin Zoo, kindly sponsored by FBD. These Champions are those children who are demonstrating excellence, innovation and commitment to improving farm safety awareness as part of the pilot programme.
The Regional Champions have gone above and beyond what is expected of them within the programme. They are passionate not just about farming but about making sure the message of farm safety is included and very much part of the conversation in their classrooms, at home and in their community.
Farm Safe Schools coordinator and AgriKids founder, Alma Jordan explained what made Conor stand out from the crowd.
She said: “We received a huge volume of entries for this inaugural FBD Regional Awards and it proves the ability and capability of our children to change the culture around farm safety.
“Conor has grown the farm safety conversation by bringing it home to ask questions to his family and then bringing the information back to his classmates, this is exactly what Farm Safe Schools is all about.”
The Farm Safe Schools pilot is a joint collaboration between Agri Aware, AgriKids, the IFA and is supported by the FBD Trust.
IFA President Tim Cullinan said the programme is playing an important role in changing the culture around farm safety.
He said: “The school setting – whether in the classroom or remotely – is an excellent approach to reinforce an essential message. Recognising champions in the classroom instils a message the children can take with them through their lives.”