Firefighters from Kendal will be showing Cumbria’s High Sheriff, Clare Hensman, how they are helping schoolchildren to develop a burning passion for maths this Friday (14 March).
During the event, Mrs Hensman will present Cumbria Fire & Rescue Service with the High Sheriff's Shield in recognition of firefighters work with young people in the county.
Print and broadcast media are invited to the town’s Busher Walk fire station from 11:15am where they will see the presentation of the shield before joining the High Sheriff to watch firefighters take Year-9 pupils from Dallam School through a hands-on maths lesson using fire hoses, breathing apparatus and other fire-fighting equipment.
Cumbria Fire & Rescue Service’s Red Hot Maths programme takes it lead from the Key Stage 3 National Numeracy Strategy which requires a practical understanding of mathematics in a variety of ‘work’ settings. Firefighters help pupils to calculate water tank capacities, hose volume and flow rates, sizes of buildings and respiratory rates.
Developed with the help of SETPOINT Cumbria, the initiative is the only one of its kind in England. The scheme received national recognition at last year’s SETNET (Science, Engineering, Technology and Mathematics Network) awards.
Councillor Gary Strong, cabinet member responsible for Cumbria Fire& Rescue Service, said: "Receiving the High Sheriff's Shield is a tremendous honour for the Fire and Rescue Service.
"The occasion will also be an opportunity to show the High Sheriff some of the exciting work we are doing to help young people improve their maths.
"Maths is sometimes thought of as a dry, academic subject. The Red Hot Maths scheme is turning that perception on its head.
"Firefighters are seen as positive role models and the scheme uses the practical application of fire fighting equipment to make the subject more interesting and relevant to their lives."
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