Pupils’ unexpected honour – helping to open a fire station!

TWO Warrington school children got an unexpected honour – they were invited to help open a new fire station.
Ellie Smythe, aged nine and Thomas Davies, aged eight, pupils from St Vincent’s Primary School, helped Lord Lieutenant of Cheshire David Briggs perform the opening ceremony at nearby Penketh Fire Station – one of four to be built across the county at a cost of £17.5 million.
They were watched by an audience of councillors, fire authority members, invited guests and fellow pupils – and it was during the Lord Lieutenant’s speech that he invited the youngsters help him with the official opening.
Among the guests were the chief fire and rescue advisor for the government, Peter Holland and Cheshire’s chief fire officer, Paul Hancock.
After the opening, guests were given a demonstration by the station’s new wholetime and on-call firefighters and the children were given a tour of a fire engine and a taste of what it is like to be firefighter.
Mr Hancock said: “It is exciting to see our ambitious programme become reality with Penketh being the second of our four new stations to officially open. This fire station, along with Alsager which was the first of the four to open, Powey Lane and Lymm, will ensure we can continue to protect communities across Cheshire.
“The investment the authority has made in the new fire stations, together with changing how some fire engines are staffed, means we will be able to make more efficient and effective use of our emergency response services in the future.”
Chairman of Cheshire Fire Authority Cllr Bob Rudd added: “I would like to wish the very best for our first cohort of Penketh firefighters including our new on-call crew. We take great pride in the quality of our personnel and in their commitment to serving the public and the communities of Cheshire.
“Firefighters are key local advocates; they are part of a wider network of front-line public service workers, whose job it is to ensure that our communities are safe, secure, sustainable and prosperous.”
One of the other four fire stations is under construction at Lymm.
Picture: (left to right) Peter Holland, Cllr Bob Rudd, Ellie Smythe, David Briggs, Paul Hancock and Thomas Davies