Kids get Clued Up on safety
Over 500 students from Queenstown Lakes and Central Otago have officially graduated from Civil Defence’s 'Don’t Panic, We’ve Got This' school of emergency smarts — AKA ‘Clued Up Kids’.
Clued Up Kids is a fun, hands-on programme designed to help pupils in Year 6, that's 10- and 11-year-olds, recognise and respond to emergencies with confidence. Run annually by Emergency Management Otago, the programme brings together schools, emergency services, and community groups to teach practical, lifesaving skills ranging from fire safety and emergency planning to water smarts, pet care, hygiene, and mental wellbeing.
Students rotate through short, interactive sessions led by experts from Emergency Management Otago, Fire and Emergency NZ, NZ Police, St John, Coastguard, Land Search and Rescue, Public Health, the Red Cross, local youth trusts, and Queenstown Lakes District Council.
The goal is simple: help kids stay calm under pressure, know what to do, act fast, and step up to help themselves and others. These are skills they can use at school, at home, and for life.
"This is the ideal age to build confidence, situational awareness, and the ability to take action," Emergency Management Otago advisor Craig Gibson says.
"The kids walk away with real lifesaving skills and they’re taking those lessons home, starting conversations with teachers, classmates, and whānau about being better prepared."
This year’s programme was the biggest yet, with 255 participating students in Queenstown, 155 in Wānaka, and 130 in Alexandra. It involved 13 schools; 50 parent helpers and teachers; 40 volunteers from 11 emergency services and community organisations; and five Emergency Management Otago staff.
"It’s a real team effort with benefits that reach far beyond the classroom," Gibson says. "The kids are engaged, the feedback’s overwhelmingly positive, and the ripple effect it creates through schools, families and the wider community is exactly what we’re aiming for."
Gibson also thanked the programme’s first private sponsors — local tourism businesses iFLY Indoor Skydiving, Ziptrek Ecotours, and Air Milford — for their commitment to youth safety and for helping make the event more accessible to schools across the region.
iFLY owner and Queenstown Lakes councillor Matt Wong, whose business received a national award in 2024 for its youth-focused mental health programme, praised Clued Up Kids as 'a fantastic initiative", and is looking forward to seeing his own daughter take part next year.
