Pingelly sends message of respect

The Pingelly community came together to guide the town’s youngsters towards proactive and responsible behaviour during the school holidays.

After a number of stealing and damages offences committed by youth during the last school holidays, police in Pingelly and Brookton engaged in community policing to empower children to respect their town.

Years 6 and 7 students at Pingelly Primary School climbed to the sacred Boyagin Rock and were treated to talks from Narrogin-born football legend Barry Cable, women’s volleyball player Jen Day and Brookton elder “Uncle” George McGuire.

Mr McGuire said taking the children to the 40,000-year-old sacred Noongar rock was a good way to teach the students the history of Noongar culture in the region.

Acting Sergeant Paul Grosveld said the community safety day would give police the opportunity to explain how crime affects the town.

“Engaging with kids and providing positive reinforcement, explaining the impacts of crime and how it affects everyone in town will hopefully reduce the trend,” he said.

“Over the next school holidays, I hope to see a decrease in the increase of crime.”

Mr Cable said it was good to see the whole community come out in support of the students and he hoped to impart the importance of hard work.

“It is important for children to get the balance,” he said.

“I told them to work hard at school and know that making a mistake is okay.

“It’s about strength and resilience, working hard towards goals and being patient and committed.”