We welcomed our current King's Trust groups from Prescot and Wallasey, alongside some of our valued delivery partners, to our King’s Trust 50th anniversary celebrations held at the MFRS Training and Development Academy this month.

Split into watches, participants rotated through a series of challenging sessions including:

🏃‍♂️ Equipment relay
⏳️ Timed rat run challenge
🎯 Hose target challenge
🐾 Search and Rescue Dog Team
🕸 Spider web challenge

Every activity put communication, resilience and teamwork to the test, with points awarded throughout the day.

“Was a brilliant day, I loved all the games and being involved with another team, I was knackered by the end, but it was worth it!” – Laura

Halfway through the event, everyone gathered to watch a road traffic collision demonstration delivered by a crew from Aintree Community Fire Station.

“A really good, exciting day, where we learned a lot more about the fire service. Well organised and a really positive day.” – Ewen

Congratulations to White Watch, who scored the most points and came out on top as the overall winners of the day!

“Friday was a huge success and a pleasure to share with our partners and service users. I was super proud of my team and our department for honouring this anniversary well. The day was really well put together and all staff put a tremendous effort in. Well done to everyone involved!” - Libby Jordan, MFRS King’s Trust Programme Support Worker

“What an amazing day that was! So brilliantly organised! Such a fun, inclusive day!” – Jen Gold, King’s Trust Youth Development Lead - TEAM Merseyside and Cheshire

 

50 years of King’s Trust: MFRS Helping young people build brighter futures

Since its inception in 1976, The King's Trust, founded by His Majesty King Charles III, has helped more than 1.3 million young people build brighter futures.

Today, 50 years on, the charity continues that mission by supporting young people across the UK with training, personal development opportunities, business start-up support and the life skills needed to move forward with confidence.

Here in Merseyside, we are incredibly proud to have been part of that journey.

In May 2002, the first Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service-led King's Trust programme began at Kirkdale Community Fire Station.

Since then, MFRS has developed and established its King's Trust Team Programme across community fire stations across the region, supporting young people aged 16 to 25 who may be facing barriers to education, employment or personal development.

“It was amazing, I did not think I would be able to do everything, but I did! And the food was epic!” – Oscar

The programme provides opportunities for young people to challenge themselves, develop new skills and gain valuable experiences through activities including a residential, a community project, work experience placements, team-building challenges and many other opportunities designed to support their personal growth and future aspirations.

Our day of celebrations was not just in recognition of 50 years of The King's Trust, but also of the thousands of young people whose lives have been changed through its support. We are proud to play our part in that story and look forward to helping many more young people realise their potential in the years ahead.

 

“Thank you for the invite to the 50th Celebrations, it was a fantastic day showcasing all things King’s Trust!!

“It was great to network with fellow organisations who support the programme, along with meeting the young people undertaking the course!” - Sgt Rachel Lemonofides ReMSO (Regimental Mentoring and Support Officer), Ministry of Defense

 

“I really enjoyed the event and it was inspiring to see first-hand the positive impact the programme continues to have on young people across Merseyside. The partnership between the King's Trust and Merseyside Fire & Rescue Service is clearly making a real difference and the enthusiasm and engagement of the young people was evident throughout the day.” – Sharon Bathily, DWP Senior Operation Lead

 

“The MFRS staff were amazing in helping us to understand the tasks and have fun whilst competing as a team – we may not have won but it was a great opportunity to network and hear about other agencies and their work as well as the young people’s perspective on the programme.

“It was also a privilege to be able to witness the professionalism and expertise of the road traffic collision demonstration and of course meet the real star in Scout from the Search and Rescue Team!“– Alistair Cureton, Career Connect