Media centre

Wednesday 17 Jan 2007

NO MESSIN'! BRINGS SURPRISE REWARD IN MIDDLESBROUGH

Region & Route:

Ten year old Kieran Nugent found that following the rail safety message can bring its own reward as he was presented with an Xbox at Middlesbrough FC’s replay against Hull last night (16 Jan). Boro winger Stewart Downing is an ardent supporter of Network Rail's No Messin'! campaign, which aims to educate young people about the dangers of playing on the railway. Presenting Kieran with his prize, Stewart said: "I think the No Messin'! campaign is a fantastic idea. I'm tempted to say that it's on the right track. Seriously, it's an important message that I would advise young people to listen to. Train tracks can seem like good places to explore but the fatal accidents that happen tell a different story. Network Rail is clearly looking at the problem from a different slant and the more young people that hear the message the better." Middlesbrough fan Kieran attended a two day event at Stockton last summer and, as part of the activities, was entered into a draw to win the Xbox. As an extra surprise Middlesbrough arranged for him to go to the match – and to be presented with his prize by Stewart. An overwhelmed Kieran said: "I really enjoyed the No Messin'! event last summer - especially the climbing wall and the surf machine. It’s a really good way of trying something new for free. Winning the Xbox was great but it was even better to be invited to see Middlesbrough play and to meet Stewart." In the past year, almost 50 people were killed and hundreds more were injured on the railway, crossing the tracks, taking short cuts, messing around or playing chicken. Research shows that the majority of these were young people. The No Messin'! campaign promotes alternative activities which young people can get involved with. The website www.no-messin.com has details of these plus, in the summer, more live events where young people can come along and try a new activity – and maybe be next year's winner! In addition to the No Messin'! campaign Network Rail has a team of dedicated Railway Crime Education Managers who work closely with other parts of the railway industry, offering railway safety information and visiting schools, youth offending teams, youth clubs and local authorities throughout the UK.