An integral part of the work done by NFRS is educating the public on fire safety and response to emergencies. NFRS actively organises information campaigns and events to help people learn about prevention, yet the potential for covering a wider target audience is not exhausted.
In its quantitative study of 2021 “How the Latvian public understands preparedness and response to emergencies and disasters or near-disaster situations,” PwC found that the confidence of Latvian people in their capacity for response to all types of emergency situations is quite high and yet not so high as to make it reliable.
Accordingly, it would be particularly important to promote awareness of the public, especially children and young people, of fire safety and appropriate response to emergencies. For this purpose, it would be necessary to set up mobile and stationary safety classes to help people learn about various safety matters in an attractive and interesting way.
The goal
Identify the most efficient way of setting up safety classes to educate the public on appropriate response to emergencies and to raise awareness of fire safety and civil defence matters.
Tasks
- Analyse preventive solutions available abroad (to educate the public on fire safety and appropriate response to emergencies)
- Assess the most efficient training methods and training conditions in audiences of various ages
- Assess the levels and types of equipment and devices for inclusion and deployment in the stationary class and mobile classes
- Analyse costs and benefits
- Prepare technical specifications for implementing the optimal solution for NFRS
Key activities in implementing the project
- Organising two focus groups with prevention experts representing the emergency services, IT experts, and school teachers
- Launching written surveys and six in-depth interviews with representatives of foreign firefighting and rescue departments and safety centres
- Conducting interviews with Latvian subject-matter experts – representatives of museums, representatives of the informal education movement, and experts on cybersafety and privacy policy
- Preparing recommendations for modules and equipment as well as scenarios to be used in safety classes, as well as the layout and design of the premises
- Conducting a cost-benefit analysis of potential solutions
- Preparing six technical specifications for setting up NFRS’s stationary safety class and mobile safety classes
The outcome
As a result of the study, we established how safety classes could best help people acquire wider knowledge and skills needed in various emergencies, promoting the achievement of NFRS’s goal of preventive measures. Great emphasis was placed on the existing studies of didactic techniques and training methods, and on foreign experts’ insights into diverse learning styles. As part of the project, we gathered information on technology solutions available in the market and estimated the costs and benefits of setting up such safety classes.
The technical specifications for ensuring safety classes include descriptions of recommended training modules, blueprints for the premises, the content of topics, explanations of module scenarios, and the proposed equipment, as well as illustrative examples from foreign experience.
Financing from the European Union – civil defence and humanitarian aid
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