KidZone has reunited 3,500 lost children on BCP beaches

Every summer, somewhere on seven miles of sand, a child looks up and cannot see a parent. The LV= KidZone scheme exists for that moment, and the running total is the kind of statistic that stops you: more than 3,500 lost children and vulnerable adults reunited with their families on Bournemouth and Poole beaches since the scheme began in 2007, Poole Tourism reported on 12 September.

How it works

The seafront from Sandbanks to Hengistbury Head is divided into zones, each with a colour and a name on the promenade signs. At the kiosks you collect a free wristband in your zone's colour, write a phone number on it and put it on your child. If they wander, seafront staff and the RNLI lifeguards can read the band and walk them back to the right stretch of sand, and call you on the way. It is simple, it is free, and it has worked several thousand times.

Using it on a beach day

• Pick up the bands first. The kiosks are at the piers and along the promenade; ask at the nearest one when you arrive rather than after a scare.
• Note the zone name. The signs on the promenade tell you which zone you are in. A child who can say the name is easier to bring home.
• It works for adults too. The scheme covers vulnerable adults as well as children, and the bands are available to anyone who asks.

The scheme runs across both towns, from Sandbanks and Shore Road in Poole to Bournemouth, Boscombe and Southbourne, so a family moving between beaches in a week can use the same routine on each. Our beaches guide explains the geography, Bournemouth's family beaches picks the calm stretches for small children, and Bournemouth with kids has the rest of the week.