Nottinghamshire Police cadets face mock major incident exercise at HQ
Police cadets have learned about the shocking realities of road safety and the consequences of careless driving as they responded to a mock major incident.
The group of 25 young people, aged between 11 and 16, ‘responded’ to reports of a ‘serious car crash’ at force headquarters.
The ‘crash’ occurred on a foggy morning when three cars collided at a busy junction in the city centre and brought down a power line, which led to a widespread blackout and multiple injuries.
A driver from one of the cars had fled the scene, and the drone team was called to assist the cadets in identifying the missing driver.
While one group participated in the roleplay scenario, the second group were given a classroom briefing that included key road safety information and an insight into the roles of emergency services at major incidents.
After arriving at the scene, the cadets took on the role of officers and put their emergency skills to the test as they closed the ‘road’ with cones before assessing the unfolding incident.
In the exercise, cadets roleplayed as casualties and were assessed at the scene with coloured triage wristbands, which allow police officers to quickly identify the category of care an injured patient urgently needs.
They were supported by two cadet leader police officers during the afternoon, who guided the cadets through the scenario and prompted them about key decision-making.
Cadet leader Matthew Rudnicki, the driver who had fled the scene in the mock exercise, was later located by the drone team in nearby woodland before being ‘arrested’ by the cadets and led away in handcuffs.
Sergeant Vanessa Wake is part of Nottinghamshire Police’s engagement team, which is responsible for delivering the cadets programme.
She said: “Our cadet bases get up to a broad variety of different challenges and activities each year.
“They were invited to force headquarters in Arnold earlier this summer, and events like this are key for personal development and equipping young people with life skills.
“This session was a great success because of the way the cadets applied themselves – they were inquisitive and engaged throughout.
“This is just a snapshot of the exciting activities that Nottinghamshire Police cadets get up to – from community projects and conducting operations, to assisting with charity fundraisers.
“We are only able to deliver interactive sessions like these with the support of our amazing cadet leaders.
“We are always on the lookout for more cadet leaders to help support our cadet bases and facilitate these sessions. If you are interested in volunteering or to find out more, please contact [email protected].”
Volunteer Police Cadets are the nationally recognised police uniformed youth group in England and Wales.
In Nottinghamshire, junior cadet sessions are available to secondary school students between Years 7 and 11, with senior cadet sessions available to those in Years 12 and 13.
A total of 31 cadet leaders, made up of police officers, staff and civilian volunteers, offer their time, skills and knowledge to operate the force’s six cadet bases by running weekly sessions during school term time to 148 young people across Nottinghamshire.