Friendly match results in townwide safety campaign

Rochdale Fire service and the young footballers celebrate the success outcome of the match.

A friendly football match between Rochdale Fire Service and Greenbank Youth Group has resulted in them clubbing together to form a campaign – promoting fire safety among young people.

A burning desire was shared among the young people who want to raise awareness of the hazards of fire.

Fire fighters and the youngsters have now formed a project where the youngsters will act as messengers to other children in the town, passing on useful information on how to stay safe in the event of a fire, and how to prevent such an event from happening.

Mohamad Zarafat, area youth worker and one of the organisers of the project said: “This project gave young people an opportunity to learn about the dangers of fire and the risks that the fire service go through to protect our communities.”


“This experience with the fire service will help to further increase the understanding of the difficult & dangerous situations that the fire service face on a daily basis.

“Furthermore, it will also increase the awareness of the dangers that young people can potentially face whilst at home & in social settings. I am grateful for the time and energy the fire Service has put in to this project. They are our unsung heroes.”

He added: “We are now discussing the possibilities of creating an awareness video with the fire service. This will be a first video project of its kind.”

Councillor Mohammad Sharif, the community cohesion profile holder for Rochdale commented “I know further to the experience these young men enjoyed with the Fire Service, a few are now considering the possibility of joining the service after school.

“Our fire service risks their lives protecting our communities and I will encourage other youth groups to follow Mohammed’s lead. It’s an excellent initiative.”