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October 30, 2014 at 11:17 AM

The 2014 Buddy Day will take place on 14 November in Auckland, Wellington, Hamilton and Tauranga.

Buddy Day, organised by Child Matters, involves school children decorating a lifesize cardboard "buddy" for adoption by influential business people, celebrities, politicians, iwi, community leaders, social advocates and members of the public. The Buddy is used to generate conversations about the role every adult has in keeping children safe from abuse in their workplaces and communities.

Buddy Day promotes the message that every adult in New Zealand can make a difference when it comes to keeping children safe. This year, participating adults will receive an informational brochure with tips for keeping kids safe on the sport field, in school, at social gatherings and other situations. Child Matters Chief Executive, Anthea Simcock said "The reality is that every adult can take a few proactive steps that can greatly minimise the likelihood of child abuse occurring. Buddy Day is about asking adults to step up and do whatever they can to help prevent child abuse in their circles of influence."

1500 Buddys are to be adopted this year, with many New Zealand businesses becoming involved. Sovereign insurance company, the principal supporter of Buddy Day, promoted the day with employees at a special meeting in Auckland. CEO Symon Brewis-Weston said "Raising awareness of these issues is very important for the future of New Zealand. We actively encourage staff to get involved in Buddy Day and understand the important role they can play in creating safer communities for children to thrive within."

Participation in Buddy Day is free. Find out more, register as a Buddy Carer on the Buddy Daywebsite, or get the latest updates on Facebook.

Link to the NZFVC website