HUNDREDS of Wirral schoolchildren are taking part in a safety awareness course this week, aimed at preventing accidental injuries.

The event has been organised by Wirral University Teaching Hospital after more than 21,000 young people entered their accident and emergency department in 2014 as a result of such injuries.

Emergency services from across the north west have joined forced to showcase their skills to pupils from across Merseyside.

The show includes live demonstrations from Merseyside Fire & Rescue Service, Merseyside Police, British Transport Police, North West Ambulance Service and a special visit via helicopter from North West Air Ambulance Service.

Kate Potts, a major trauma nurse co-ordinator at Arrowe Park Hospital, said: “For years we have been visiting children in our community to teach them the importance of safety awareness and we have always seen a reduction in incidents in the areas we have visited.

“Ahead of this year’s summer holidays, we have brought together many other emergency services to create an event that is interesting and exciting so that we make a big impact on all of the children here today.”

The safety awareness show took place at the Emergency Services Training College in Birkenhead and featured CPR classes, a model emergency department, paramedic demonstrations and a simulated house fire.

David Alcock, chief executive of the Emergency Services Training College, said: “Providing live demonstrations to such a young audience is not something we’ve done before but it’s proven to be a great idea.

“Having such hands-on activities on offer has been a great way to interact with the kids and you can see they’ve genuinely been engaged with every aspect of the day.”

More than 1,000 children from across Merseyside will attend the three-day event, where they will also  learn about the dangers of being a victim of crime and the risks associated with drugs and alcohol.

Thirteen-year-old Beth Murray, from Woodchurch High School, said: “Today has been fantastic and we’re really lucky to have all these professionals here to teach us how to stay safe.

“I was hit by a car when I was five-years-old but it wasn’t until today that I realised that accidents like mine can be avoided if we give people better education.”

The north west region sees the second highest number of children admitted to hospital due to accidental injuries – ranging from minor burns caused by fireworks to broken bones from cycling.

Wirral University Teaching Hospital is one of the few hospitals to have its own Paediatric Emergency Department and is already planning to host many more Safety Awareness Shows for children throughout Wirral.