Bonfire Night

Why Do We Celebrate Bonfire Night?

On November 1605, a plot was put in place by the Catholics to blow up parliament and King James 1. The plan was to put gunpowder under the houses of parliament and Guy Fawkes was the man who was entrusted to light the fuse.

Unfortunately for him, he was discovered on the morning of November 5th  captured, tortured and executed. The people of London were so thankful their king had been saved they lit bonfires to celebrate, this was the beginning of bonfire night.

Safety First

With bonfires, fireworks and sparklers each year it is essential that parents are careful. Last year there were 200 casualties from sparklers and 25% of them were children under five with this in mind see below how you can keep your child safe.

• Never give sparklers to children under five
• Make sure your child wears gloves
• Have a bucket of cold water for them to put the sparklers in once it has gone out as sparklers burn at 2,000 degrees Celsius
• Teach your child how to hold the sparkler away from their body and others
• Ensure that you always supervise any child with a sparkler

If The Worst Happens

• Run the burn under cold running water for at least 10 minutes
• Do not rub oil or butter on the burn this is an old wives tale
• Cover the area with cling film or a clean cloth
• Take the child to hospital as soon as possible