STUDENTS were given a taste of life on the wrong side of the law in a safety initiative designed to raise awareness of crime and punishment as the summer holidays get under way.
Year 8 students at The Allertonshire School, Northallerton, took part in workshops exploring various aspects of the criminal justice system including courts, prison and the potential consequences of anti-social behaviour.
The charity Prison Me No Way staged a street scene in which drinking scenarios were played out to an extreme end.
Students were given an insight into prison life by officers from Askham Grange and Hatfield Prisons in York and Doncaster, respectively, and they were able to experience life behind bars in a portable cell.
A magistrate’s court hearing led them through an assault trial with students playing the parts of the accused, witnesses and sitting in judgement on the bench and there were also sessions on internet safety.
Mother Carol Whittingham talked about how drunken joyriders claimed the life of her son Steven. She now runs an organisation called Support and Care After Road Death to help families in similar positions.
More than 200 students took part in the annual Crime and Safety Awareness Day.
Head of house Brian Bewsey said: “The day is hard-hitting and timed so they leave school for the holidays with a higher degree of awareness of how innocuous actions can sometimes land them in serious trouble.
“Bringing in the law and order experts is a very effective means of getting through to students as they talk in graphic terms about the realities of life for young people who break the law, quite often when they haven’t meant to.”
