The  Lions Club of Canberra Belconnen have come to the rescue and fully funded our project to install all new car seats in our vehicles.   The project had been on our fundraising list for some time and was explained as:

Karinya House is looking to purchase 8 car seats – Britax Safe and Sound Compaq – costing $375 each.  We recently were able to purchase two and they have been fantastic.  The advantages:

  • Standardised seat to have in all Karinya House Service Support Vehicles to ensure familiarity for staff and volunteers with regard to installation, adjustments and placement of babies and children
  • Up to date safety features
  • Suit a larger range of baby sizes/ages – Baby can stay rear facing for longer which is safer for child
  • Easy to install
  • Easy to adjust according to individual child – Hassle free harness – no need to re-thread the harness and therefore reduces the risk of incorrect installation and harness fitment.
  • Compact – suitable for variety of cars and transporting multiple women with babies and children
  • Has active head restraint to contain and protect child’s head in a side impact crash.
  • Reversible baby insert and shoulder pads- provide further support and comfort for younger babies.
  • Cover easy to wash and dries quickly.

This request came from one of our health professionals and was thoroughly researched and canvassed with the Karinya team.

This project has now been fully funded by the Lions Club of Canberra Belconnen!  Thank you to all Club Members. Car Seats have been purchased from KidSafe ACT (with a discount – thank you!). Photos coming soon …. Woo hoo!

Words from the Casework Team …

“We are super grateful to now have a standardised seat in all Karinya House Service Support Vehicles to ensure familiarity for all staff and volunteers with regard to installation, adjustments and placement of babies and children.  Karinya House regularly transport many mums and babies and having car seats that are easy to adjust according to individual child by “pushing a button” with a hassle free harness means that transport happens so much easier and ensures safety”- Kim

“There are many times when we transport women and their babies who have to get to urgent appointments. It is wonderful to be able to quickly and easily adjust car seats to ensure they are set up as securely as possible for each baby, especially when we transport babies of all ages from newborn to toddler!”- Ana

“The car seats seem so comfortable and supportive for the children we transport”- Elissa

“Thank you so much- the new car seats make it so much easier to adjust the harness of the car seats!  We previously had to remove a car seat from the car, unthread the straps before re-installing it.  This required two staff members to double check in re-installation of the car seats each time this occurred”- Millie/Cath W

“The uniformity of the car seats all being the same means it is unlikely a car seat will be installed incorrectly”- Sonya

What more can we say really! Thank you.

#ourvillage #ourcommunity

From left to right: Paul Stevens (Club President), Bev Lewis (Member and club photographer), Marie-Louise Corkhill, Kimberley Castles, Carolyn Skeen (Member and liaison for Karinya House)