Junior Pact Members Awarded Certificates In Madeley

On Friday 23 July, pupils from John Randall School in Madeley will be rewarded for their hard work in launching Telford's first ever Junior PACT (Partners and Communities Together) group with the help of the Madeley Local Policing Team.

Community Support Officer (CSO) Karen Lloyd - along with other members of the Madeley Local Policing Team - came up with idea of launching a Junior PACT initiative with the aim of involving younger people in the process and trying to find out more about their thoughts and concerns about the area they live in.

With that in mind she approached John Randall School and was delighted when a number of pupils registered an interest in taking part in the initiative and getting involved.

Speaking about the Junior PACT initiative, CSO Lloyd said: "We were delighted with the response we received when we approached the school about Junior PACT and over the past few months we have learned a lot about the types of issue that matter to younger people.

"They seem to have worries about the lack of provisions for them in Madeley and the fact that the provisions that are in place are damaged and dangerous. Interestingly they also share concerns that older residents have about things like irresponsible parking outside their school and also speeding and dangerous driving.

"Because we have been made aware of these issues we are now addressing them and we have already done a lot of work to clean up play areas in the ward and ensure that the play equipment on offer is in working order.

"The 10 children involved - who are from Year 2 to Year 6 - have all worked really hard as we have launched the initiative and it is something we will be looking to continue with for the foreseeable future. The school feel Junior PACT has been a very positive experience for their pupils too and in many ways the initiative couldn't have gone better. 

"To reward the children for their efforts I will be visiting the school on Friday with Inspector Derek Holland who will be on hand to present framed certificates to all the pupils involved. In addition, we will also be making a special presentation to the school itself to acknowledge the help they have given us."

To find out more about PACT, or your own local policing team, please log on to the Local Policing section of the West Mercia Police website at www.westmercia.police.uk/localpolicing/.

Issued: Tuesday 20 July 2010