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DRAMATIC FALL IN SCHOOL HOLIDAY ARSON
Arson incidents in the Doncaster area have seen a significant reduction during the school holidays, compared to previous years, new statistics from South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue have revealed.
Deliberate fires in Doncaster for August this year were down by 45% from August 2007. There were 164 deliberate fires this August, compared to 299 in 2007 and 216 the previous year.
The fall is being attributed to community safety initiatives carried by SYFR and partner organizations in the Doncaster district, which proved to be a great success.
Wheelie bin watch has been operating in the Balby and Hexthorpe areas in conjunction with South Yorkshire Police and Doncaster Metropolitan Borough Council, to advise residents on putting bins out and bringing them back in off the street to cut down on bin fires.
Firefighters have also been out and about on their bikes to monitor potential hotspots for arson and to issue advice on fire safety. The key was to build up a rapport with local people, particularly youngsters, to make their community safer.
Along with initiatives such as ‘LIFE’ and ‘ASDAN’ courses which are run all over the county, these ‘experience’ courses have seen young people turn their life around for the better.
Group Manager Phil Shillito for the Doncaster District said: “I am pleased to see such a reduction in these type of incidents. The main part of which is not only down to the work of SYFR, but also the delivery of a wide variety of schemes and activities for young people by Doncaster Metropolitan Borough Council, South Yorkshire Police and our education partners.”
The weather for August this year has been wetter than average which may have had some impact on the figures, however August 2008 was drier than 2006 and there was still significantly fewer fires this year than in 2006. The figures therefore show that our community safety initiatives must be having an impact on local communities.
-ENDS-
For further information please contact Corporate Communications on 0114 253 2351.
Notes to Editor
Deliberate fires in Doncaster: Aug 2006: 216
Aug 2007: 299
Aug 2008: 164
LIFE
The Local Intervention Fire Education (LIFE) course in South Yorkshire is run by South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue.
There are usually 14 participants aged between 13 and 18 years on each course, along with seven specially trained officers from South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue, who deliver the training.
Participants are selected following nomination by schools and other youth agencies, such as Youth Offending Teams.
The course is designed to change the attitude and behaviour of the young people by enabling them to:
· adopt a new set of values
· address the consequences of antisocial behaviour
· work co-operatively with others
· see the advantage of improving their own learning and performance
· gain self-esteem and self-confidence
· improve communication skills
· achieve self-empowerment.
The course takes place over five days at a local fire station and on the final day the families of the participants are invited to watch them perform a fire drill. Each young person has their progress evaluated by a brigade trainer and forward strategies are created to meet their individual needs and improve their life chances.
On completion of the course, participants also receive a portfolio showing their acquired skills, which can be used when seeking employment or further education opportunities.
The idea for LIFE comes from a youth initiative run in Tyne & Wear. LIFE was then launched in the borough of Tower Hamlets, London, in June 2002. The following statistics indicate the success of that programme:
· 95% attendance rate on the course
· 90% non-offending rate (evaluated six months after course)
· 46% reduction in non-accidental fires across Tower Hamlets
· 76% reduction in attacks on firefighters
· 3 young males into local community employment
· 6 young people from minority backgrounds currently in London Fire Brigade (LFB) recruitment process.
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