Lichfield Round Table has raised £600 for charity by joining local police officers in a day of public order training.
Thirty members of the group organised a day of training with Operational Support Unit officers who specialise in policing public order situations, dynamic entry into buildings and specialist operations.
The day included fitness training with a ‘shield run’, crowd control scenarios and street rioting with the Tablers acting as both a passive and hostile crowd. Demonstrations were also given of tactics used to restrain armed and emotionally disturbed people, how to break through doors and how new technology is increasing safety for officers and the public in confrontational situations.
Inspector Nick Rowe said:
“This event offered a series of structured scenarios to challenge our officers outside of the usual training regime. Having an additional pool of crowd to deploy in a controlled training situation was useful for us.
“We welcome the opportunity to engage with our local communities in events such as this to explain the significant challenges and risks posed to our officers by public order situations.”
All the money raised from the day will donated to the Help for Heroes charity who provide assistance to service personnel.
Chairman of Lichfield Round Table, Julian Webb, added:
“This was a fantastic activity for our guys to join in with, and we raised a substantial amount of money for a really important charity. Lichfield has a long association with the 3 Mercian (Staffords) Regiment who have just started a six month tour in Afghanistan, and we are delighted to help support our injured troops.
“After such a fascinating and activity packed day we gained a real appreciation of the skills and bravery needed to tackle specialist public order policing tasks.”
The Round Table welcomes Lichfield men aged 18 to 45. For more information, visit www.lichfieldroundtable.co.uk.
