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im all booked in to do my safe2go training next week - my question is - what more can i do? is there a next step or is that about all there is in nz?

Hi Laura :)

To put it blunty no, there's not much more that you can do (by way of education and certification). All there is available (at this point in time) is the Safe2Go course so basically, a few hours of training. I always tell people to consider Safe2Go as a "starting point" and a good starting point it definitely is :). There is just no way you could ever learn everything you need to know in a few hours - and it should never be expected that you ever would anyway.

Once some technicians get newly certified they tend to go in to things "gung ho" (if that makes sense) when installing peoples car seats and giving advice, so just remember to take things easy. Keep your eyes and ears open and be willing to be open to learning more. There's lots of resources on the internet, and that's where I started at - talking on forums and researching for more info (that just wasn't available, at least not easily, in New Zealand - which is also why I started this website!). Another thing I've learnt is never to believe (with blind faith) all information you're given by anybody, before you pass it on to others - make sure it's backed up with references/research/facts from different independent resources. That way a) you don't look stupid when you eventually find out that info was wrong and b) you don't give out the wrong info which could potentially, be dangerous. Make sense?

I am fortunate enough to have been able to travel overseas and do a course that lasted four days, and unfortunately that course is not available (at least not yet!) in New Zealand.

Education aside.. if you want to get involved in your community and help out - go for it! They always need volunteers to help do checking clinics and police check stops, sometimes though it just takes awhile to get your "foot in the door" Contact ACC Thinksafe and see if they can put you in contact with any organisations in your area that are funded to do these things. Otherwise there's always kindergartens/childcare centres you could approach and let them know you're willing to offer this service. But, keep in mind it takes awhile to teach a parent how to install a seat and don't even think about offering that service alone till you've got some experience under your belt :)

And as always if you ever need any more help flick me an email!