Police open day is child's play

The Neighbourhood Policing Team in Bedlington opened the doors to their police station this week - and handed over their handcuffs to a group of local school children.

Children aged between 6-years-old and 12-years-old donned high vis jackets and riot shields as they got a taste of what life is like as an officer at Northumbria Police.

They got to chat to their local bobbies and officers from Blyth Neighbourhood Policing Team who talked about all the work they do to keep our streets safe.

The children were also able to catch a glimpse of the officer's briefing room, the 24/7 parade room and the home of some of the region's expert detectives in the Crime Investigation Department.

Their access-all-areas tour came to an end at to the custody cells where they got the chance to make their first "arrest" - and book PC Scott Legge into custody.

To reward them for their police work all of the children were presented with special certificates before getting a chance to look inside the police cars and arrest vans.

PC Legge, who helped to organise the event, said: "The children had a great time and really enjoyed their visit. They were very curious about what happens inside the police station and couldn't wait to try on the uniforms and get stuck in. It’s an excellent way for us to show the children that we’re here whenever they need help.

"It was also good to share this on social media to show more people about what we do. This sort of event really helps to break down barriers and gives people an insight into how we work to help the community."

To show the wider community what was happening officers live streamed part of the visit on the Northumbria Police Facebook page. It reached a whopping 100,000 people and resulted in a huge number of positive comments from people near and far.