Norfolk Fire Service pledges to help children Flourish

Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service (NFRS) has pledged to support children and young people in Norfolk flourish.

To do this, the service (NFRS) are adopting the Flourish framework. Flourish is a shared ambition to achieve sustainable change for Norfolk's children and young people.

Cllr Margaret Dewsbury, Norfolk County Council's Cabinet Member for Communities and Partnerships, said:

"Norfolk is a beautiful place to grow up and can seem idyllic at first glance, but we have to work to ensure that every child in our county has access to the opportunities and support that will help them in life. By signing the Flourish Pledge, our Fire Service is taking its place among the organisations across Norfolk who are committed to helping our children and young people change their lives and truly flourish."

The pledge commits NFRS to work to improve the lives of children and young people. This work will include:

• Embedding Flourish into the Fire Service's Youth Strategy, to ensure NFRS are working to the same outcomes and priorities as partners across Norfolk
• Attending the Norfolk Children and Young People Strategic Alliance Partnership board meetings
• Review our Fire Cadet programme to widen our offer.
• Reviewing the service's early Intervention initiatives
• Improving referral pathways into the NFRS Prince's Trust programme
• Exploring ways to expand NFRS' crucial crew delivery to reach more children in Norfolk

Ceri Sumner, Director of Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service, said:

"Our Fire and Rescue Service works hard to protect all of Norfolk, and we have a role to play to in offering support to communities, including younger generations. As part of Norfolk's Children and Young People Strategic Alliance, the Fire and Rescue Service will be working hard to ensure children and young people across our county have the information, support and the opportunities to flourish, both within the service - via our Fire Cadet programme and our ongoing work with the Prince's Trust and Crucial Crew - and as part of wider Norfolk partnerships."

More than 160 pledges have been made since the launch of Flourish in May from a mix of council services, schools, volunteer sector providers, and businesses with lots more pledges to come.

Anyone from schools and colleges to small community groups and venues, businesses, charities, local councils, leisure and tourism providers, smaller teams within bigger organisations are welcome to sign up to make a Flourish pledge. Pledges can include supporting young people's careers, involving young people in decision making, or providing new activities or opportunities.

It's free to sign up, support is available to help organisations plan and deliver their pledge, and a colourful Flourish Pledge badge is available for participants to display and use in their signage, online presence, and printed materials.

You can get more ideas and information about the Flourish Pledge and the Flourishing in Norfolk strategy on the Flourish webpage or emailing flourish.pledge@norfolk.gov.uk.

To see the Flourish Pledges being made by organisations across Norfolk follow #flourishpledge on Twitter (opens new window).

Each letter of flourish reflects an aspect of children and young people's lives and what they have said is most important to them:

• Family and Friends
• Learning
• Opportunity
• Understood
• Resilience
• Individual
• Safe and Secure
• Healthy

Full details of the Flourish framework and strategy in Norfolk are available online.