The Innovation Team worked on a project with Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service to develop a set of wonderful sensory education boards for the Fire Service Education Team to use when they go to SEN schools. The partnership has won a Highly Commended Award at the Safer Communities Awards 2025!
What are the Wales Safer Communities Awards 2025?
The awards recognise outstanding contributions to community safety in a multi-agency context. They recognise individual efforts, collaborative projects and partnerships. They shine a spotlight on community safety professionals, demonstrating that their hard work is valued and makes a real difference to individuals and communities across Wales. Individuals and projects are nominated, and winners are selected by a judging panel.
The project won a Highly Commended Award in the Public Safety category:
“Together they have designed bespoke resources to support neurodiverse learners and those with specific and complex Additional Learning Needs. Some children and young people have a fascination with fire and do not fully appreciate its dangers. Developing sensory fire safety resources, in addition to the traditional delivery methods, ensure that all children have access to fire safety messages in a way they can understand. The Fire Safety Sensory boards they have developed can be used in a range of settings including mainstream schools, specialist teaching facilities and special schools and they are part of structured learning that allows sensory exploration whilst developing an awareness of key fire safety messages. The sensory boards include a radio, fire alarm, and elements of the PPE fire kit. Pupils have engaged in a way that they could not engage with PowerPoint delivery or traditional lesson plans.”
About the project
The project was the idea of Gwenda Jenkins from Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service, and came about because a recent employee of the Fire Service was helped by the Innovation Centre some years ago and suggested that the team could help.
The education boards ensure that all children can be included in fire safety. The boards have sections of real fire fighter uniforms so kids can experience the feel and sight of the fabric, there are zipper sections and velcro sections for sensory fun. There are torches, and flashing blue lights, toy fire engines and even an “emergency services” toy steering wheel with sirens and sounds!
The Fire Service have now funded another 10 sets of the boards because they have been so popular.
