Staff and students at College of West Anglia in Wisbech competed in timed assault course laps, tug of war matches and casualty evacuation tests as part of a uniformed services challenge day.
Public services including the fire and rescue service, RAF reserves, the army, Whitemoor Prison along with a prison dog section demonstration and representatives from the Royal Navy careers office featured throughout the day.
Custodial manager Emma Wilson, from HM Prison Whitemoor, said: “It’s about making the students more aware of the opportunities within the prison service and dog handling can be a big part of that.
“The dog section can get forgotten about when people apply for HMPS, so this is a great way to highlight what our team does.
“The student feedback is always positive at events like this and I hope the students will now consider this as a career path. I’ve already been talking to one girl who is keen to become a dog handler, which is great.”
HMPS dog handler Ian Fletcher said: “This is not only important from a careers point of view but for the reputation of our service.
“I hope it will satisfy people that prisons aren’t just keeping people behind a wall and that’s it. Highcliffe is a high security prison. The dog handling team security element is there 24 hours a day, seven days a week to make sure no one escapes - to protect the public - but also to ensure the welfare of the prisoners.”
Level 3 student John Goude, 19, said: “Throughout the year we compete against each other in various competitions and this friendly rivalry escalates on challenge day. This is like big finale, to see how all your hard work throughout the year comes together and see how much you have improved.”
“Every person I’ve spoken to has a different story about the service they are a part of. It helps those of us who haven’t decided which direction we want to pursue a career in, to talk with personnel and give us that little bit more of an insight to help us make up our minds.”
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