A WENDOUREE mother has called for more safe syringe disposal bins to be placed in public areas after she was shocked to find used needles littering the grounds near her children’s school.
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Mother-of-two, Amanda Fuller, said she was forced to use an empty drink bottle to scoop up a syringe, which was found on a busy footpath between Grevillea Road and Violet Grove, to prevent children from stepping on it.
But according to Ms Fuller, it wasn’t the first time a needle was found so close to schools and kindergartens in the area.
“There have been a couple and I’ve only been here six months,” she said.
“This could have realistically been a headline of a needle prick.”
Now she is calling for yellow syringe disposal bins to be placed in the area to prevent young children from getting hurt.
“The bins provide a safe disposal so young children don’t pick them up, as we know young children often stop to pick random things up off the ground,” she said.
“As much as parents tell the children not to, it’s just what kids do.
“Imagine what a mother would go through if they picked up a needle.”
With the busy pathway located between two school crossings frequented by hundreds of children each day, Ms Fuller said it was important authorities took the matter seriously.
“I’d like them (authorities) to think about the safety of children,” she said.
“The teachers are great, they always check the perimeters of the school, but there is only so much they can do.”
City of Ballarat General Manager City Services Terry Demeo said council treats notifications of syringes as an urgent priority.
“When council is notified, environmental health officers collect and safely dispose of the syringes. The City of Ballarat’s outdoor works crew is also trained and equipped to collect and safely dispose of syringes during its work throughout the municipality,” he said.
While there are currently no bins located close to schools in the Wendouree precinct, Mr Demeo said requests can be made for a fixed needle syringe container in a public space with the council’s customer service team.
“The City of Ballarat encourages anyone concerned about syringes on public land to immediately notify it with specific details about the location,” he said.
The City of Ballarat currently provides syringe bins in all public toilets.
Community members are warned not to throw any syringes loose in public bins or dispose of them in a toilet.