A project in Derbyshire aimed at tackling arson attacks on schools has reduced the county's annual bill for maliciously-started fires by �10m.

Fire officers have been trained to provide counselling for children who are caught starting fires, which includes showing them and their families videos of the damage caused.

One of the counsellors, Shareen Akhtar, said: "Most young people and their parents just don't realise how quickly fire can spread.

"We show them pictures and a video and it seems to make them think."

As evidence of the success of the initiative, the annual cost of school arson in Derbyshire has fallen from �11m three years ago - including one fire costing more than �5m - to less than �1m.

Ninety-two per cent of the children who have been counselled have not re-offended.

Arson attacks have become one of the least welcome traditions of school holidays, with unattended premises vulnerable to attack from young vandals - typically teenagers.

Last year there were more than 2,000 school arson incidents, although the Home Office-supported Arson Prevention Bureau believes that another 1,000 arson attempts are not reported to the police.

A leading insurance company for schools, Zurich Municipal, said that last year there were eight fires costing over �1m among its customers, including one school burned down, at a cost of �7m.
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