Child safety at exhibitions and events such as KidsCon

“We want parents to know that Comic Con Africa is a safe family environment and that we have worked closely with authorities to ensure the safety of the event.” says Comic Con Africa Show Director, Carla Massmann.

“Big crowds can become overwhelming and when the excitement kicks in, children could scatter into different directions leaving you as parent flustered and unsure about which one to run after first. To ensure everyone’s safety (and your sanity), prepare your family and empower them so that they know how to manage different scenarios”, adds Rianette Leibowitz, Managing Editor at BabyYumYum and Digital Parenting expert. 

Here are some tips to consider ensuring everyone sticks together and that you enjoy KidsCon as much as the little ones do:

Preparation for child safety at exhibitions and events:

• Talk about what your children can expect at the event. Big crowds, lots of other children running around, noise and loads of fun. It might be come a bit overwhelming, but they can remember that you can leave at any time.
• Stranger danger. Remind your children that they shouldn’t talk to strangers, however that at the event, there will be people who work at the different exhibition stands who might want to tell them about their products or games. It is fine if they listen to them, but they should stay with you and not answer questions from other people about personal information, like where they live and what school they attend.
• Let your children understand that it is dangerous to play games such as hide-and-seek in public places and that the family must stay together at all times. Even when someone wants to go to the toilet, gets hungry or needs fresh air.
• Write your phone number on your child’s arm with a permanent (non-toxic) marker in case your child gets lots and the organisers need to phone you. This is not something that can be removed such as a bracelet.

At the event:

• Clothing – Take a picture of the family and ensure you know what your children are wearing. It might be a good idea to all wear the same colour shirt or jacket to make it easier for you children to spot you in the crowd.
• Parking – find landmarks or ways to remember where you have parked your car. Keep in mind that if you will be staying late, it might look different at night.
• Entrance – As you enter the venue, let your children carefully look at which entrance you are coming in at and how they will be able to recognise the exit.
• Children’s play area – If you, for some reason, get separated from each other, agree to meet your child in the children’s play area and that they should wait there instead of wondering around, trying to find you. Another option is the Organiser’s Office; however, it might be difficult to find it your child cannot read or if they are too small to see ahead.
• Toilets – Your children should never go to the toilet unsupervised and never go with a stranger.
• Open wifi – be careful about connecting to open wifi zones. Rather use secure connections.
• Unless your children are unrecognisable (wearing their favourite character’s costume and make-up) do not let anyone take photos with them unless you have personally given permission.
• Balloons can help – This might sound a bit ‘far out’ however if you tie a long string attached to a helium balloon to your child’s wrist, it will be easier to spot them wherever they are.

After the event:

• Talk about the highlights and what the children enjoyed the most.
• Find out if anything scared them or made them feel uncomfortable.
• If anything, scary happened, debrief and talk about how you can handle it differently next time.
• Congratulate your children and celebrate a good day out so that you are ready and excited about the next event.

“Children should be free of worry and don’t need to know about everything we have thought of to pave the way for their safety and fun at events. Let them enjoy the experience and learn how to be responsible, with you by their side”, encourages Leibowitz.

“We encourage parents to make their way to the organisers’ office as soon as they experience something concerning that might impact the safety of their children. We appreciate the collaboration of the fans in this regard. The organisers’ office can be found in in between Hall 5 and Hall 6 on the lake side of the event. We also have a variety of child safety policies in place – such as for missing children, children separated from the parents, as well as injury.” Massmann concludes.

Families can purchase their passes to Comic Con Africa, which includes access to KidsCon, on Howler from only R200 each at: https://comiccon.howler.co.za/comicconafrica2024