London Fire Brigade - helping with LIFE's little ups and downs
All too often we see the wrongdoer being rewarded. The greedy MP immorally claiming thousands in expenses, the celebrity convict receiving nominal punishment followed by lucrative rounds of public speaking or the teenage law breaker, treated to rehabilitation at Alton Towers or Thorpe Park. So it was inspiring to witness the London Fire Brigade engage with worthy youngsters under the brigade's LIFE (Local Intervention Fire Education) Project.
Ironically, the history of the programme lies in attempting to connect with the scrotes of East London who thought hoax calls and stoning firefighters was fun. And it's proved successful. Using a combination of teamwork and communication exercises and firefighter training the youths now see the firefighters as people rather than targets.
Thankfully, the scheme has now extended beyond the ne'er do wells. Local charity PACT (Parents of Autistic Children Together) got together with LFB and eight lucky youngsters enjoyed a week at Dagenham fire station.
My son attended and I don't mind admitting I got a real buzz from him coming home each night bursting to tell me what he'd been up to. Climbing ladders, using the hoses, wearing breathing apparatus - all things he really wouldn't have tried a few months ago - were taken up with a passion. On the last day we attended a 'pass-out' parade when family, friends and local dignitaries got an opportunity to see what the kids had learnt. The pride amongst the parents and friends was tangible. But the pride was not just directed towards the kids, who had worked so hard, but towards the firefighters. These are people trained to fight blazes and rescue lift passengers not handle kids with communication difficulties and yet they took it all in their stride. As each instructor stepped forward to announce who they tutored and what their enduring memory of the week was you could see this was not a skive from o
perational duties. In fact, I'm guessing operational duties are probably easier than dealing with some of our kids. Theirs was a genuine pride in teaching these kids something new and knowing that these deserving children would remember this week for the whole of their lives. This programme may be costly but its validity is beyond measure. Long may it continue.
Thankfully, the scheme has now extended beyond the ne'er do wells. Local charity PACT (Parents of Autistic Children Together) got together with LFB and eight lucky youngsters enjoyed a week at Dagenham fire station.
My son attended and I don't mind admitting I got a real buzz from him coming home each night bursting to tell me what he'd been up to. Climbing ladders, using the hoses, wearing breathing apparatus - all things he really wouldn't have tried a few months ago - were taken up with a passion. On the last day we attended a 'pass-out' parade when family, friends and local dignitaries got an opportunity to see what the kids had learnt. The pride amongst the parents and friends was tangible. But the pride was not just directed towards the kids, who had worked so hard, but towards the firefighters. These are people trained to fight blazes and rescue lift passengers not handle kids with communication difficulties and yet they took it all in their stride. As each instructor stepped forward to announce who they tutored and what their enduring memory of the week was you could see this was not a skive from o
perational duties. In fact, I'm guessing operational duties are probably easier than dealing with some of our kids. Theirs was a genuine pride in teaching these kids something new and knowing that these deserving children would remember this week for the whole of their lives. This programme may be costly but its validity is beyond measure. Long may it continue. 
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