Year 3 pupils from Kings Norton Primary School were invited to the West Midlands Police’s firearms training facility in Aston as a thank you after pupils wrote letters of support to the police following recent terror attacks. The visit involved a two hour tour around the site, pupils dressing up in riot gear, taking the wheel of police vehicles (sirens and all!) and quizzing police about the life of an officer.
A small part of the visit involved the pupils aiming plastic replica firearms at targets, which has since drawn criticism on social media. However, the school had sent home a letter of consent beforehand and it has been reported that no parents have contacted the school with concerns, apart from to praise them for the work they do.
The visit was an opportunity for the police to talk with the pupils to reassure them and to remind them that the police are there to keep people safe. The Deputy Head of the school has stated that before the visit, many of the pupils had said that they had recently noticed more police in Birmingham and an increase in officers carrying guns. A spokesman for the school has stated: “The children enjoyed themselves. They learned a great deal and their minds were put at ease around their initial concerns”.
It is great to see a school engaging pupils with our fantastic emergency services who do so much and put so much at risk on a daily basis to keep us safe. Kings Norton Primary also recently received a visit from the West Midlands Ambulance Service, in which a paramedic showed pupils around an ambulance. Visits such as these are also a good way of getting pupils of all ages thinking about what they may want to do for a career.
