Emergency education: Volunteer service crews inspire young minds of Tambellup Primary School

Tambellup police and volunteer emergency service crews visited Tambellup Primary School on Thursday to host a day of interaction and learning about their jobs. Students got the chance to simulate emergency situations while learning the fundamental aspects of volunteer crews in the small community. The Department of Fire and Emergency Services, St John, rangers and police crews attended the school to speak to the children. Teacher Sue Sheridan organised the day in a bid to teach the children about the services available to them. “It’s important for the kids to understand what services we have in town,” Ms Sheridan said. “In a community like ours, everybody knows each other and we need volunteers to keep the community safe. “So it’s key for the students to learn at a young age that towns like us need these volunteers.” Ms Sheridan said there was a stigma surrounding police officers among the younger generation. “A lot of children seem to think that the police are only for catching bad people, but they’re not,” she said. “They’re here to help us out.” Tambellup police officer-in-charge Sgt David Swain said his team aimed to “take the fear out of the uniform”. “We really want to promote the message that the WA police serve as a point of contact for young people within the community,” he said. “We’re not just here to lock people up — we’re here to assist people. “Helping the town and people in the community is one of our key values.”