Stopping County Lines in Their Tracks

One school. Three days. Two rail education officers. 15 workshops. 492 students.

Back in January, Platform had the great pleasure of working with the fantastic students and staff at Dorchester Middle School.

For the first day, Ellie and Sophie set up home in the gym where they facilitated rail safety workshops with Year 5 and 6. Through a combination of slides, films, quizzes, dressing-up and roleplay, they covered all the key rail safety messages whilst simultaneously promoting trains as a fun, fast and sustainable way to travel. Woven throughout the workshops were references to the wealth of careers available within the rail industry, with explicit reference to the skills and attributes needed to be effective in the role in question.

“The Year 5 and 6 students were a joy to spend the day with. Amazing behaviour and levels of engagement. We also found them to be highly personable, with several staying behind for more rail-related chat afterwards. Thanks, too, to the staff who stayed in for the sessions and were equally invested in the experience.” Ellie Swain, Senior Learning Development Officer

“The best outside provision we’ve ever had.” Fiona Ray, teacher

“Super safety info and joy for rail travel. Very informative. The pupils were fully engaged in the dynamic presentation. Thank you from the children of year 5 and 6 at DMS.” Tim Haigh, teacher

“A fantastic workshop which the children (and adults) really enjoyed. They were all extremely engaged in the activities and they learnt a lot. Thank you so much.” Esme Cumber, teacher

On their second and third days at the school, Ellie and Sophie facilitated workshops on the serious and important issue of county lines. Using Crimestoppers’ Running the Lines film as a stimulus for the session, they were able to cover the different stages of recruitment, signs to spot that you or a peer is being targeted, and how to get yourself or someone else out.

“Delivering the County Lines workshops at Dorchester Middle school was an incredibly rewarding experience for me. The students’ engagement, insightful contributions, and willingness to discuss such a challenging topic made for powerful and meaningful sessions. It was inspiring to see their critical thinking in action, reinforcing the importance of open conversations around a crucial issue facing many young people in their region.” Sophie Lounds, Learning Development Officer

“Fantastic workshop expertly delivered.” Mr W Hoddinott, teacher

With county lines being synonymous with train travel and Dorchester boasting two train stations, emphasis was placed on how to stay safe on the railway, which included promoting the number to text to contact the British Transport Police (61016). At the end of the session, every student was given their own BTP card featuring this and other useful information.

The Year 7s were joined by special guest Chantelle Bacon, South Wessex CRP’s Officer, who has always been a strong advocate for the range of quality learning opportunities that Platform facilitates for the young people of Somerset and Dorset, and was keen to see their latest workshop offer in action.

“Thank you again for your amazing work at Dorchester Middle School. It was pitched so well and the teachers and students really enjoyed it and can’t wait for more.” Chantelle Bacon

Ellie and Sophie would like to extend their thanks to Chantal Emery (Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead and PSCHEE Faculty Leader at Dorchester Middle School) for organising this visit, to Chantelle (South Wessex CRP) for her time and support, and to Platform’s generous funders (GWR, CrossCountry and the Community Rail Network) for continuing to enable them to educate and inspire the next generation of rail users.

The whole Platform team is keen to continue delivering its county lines workshop across South Wessex CRP and its four other CRPs: Worcestershire, Severnside, TransWilts and Gloucestershire. Please spread the word!