FIRE chiefs in York are running a campaign to try and stop wayward teenagers getting a taste for arson.

The Local Intervention Fire Education (LIFE) scheme is running at Huntington Fire Station next week - during the school half-term - for about 14 youths aged between 13 and 18, to try to deter arson attacks.

York fire chief Graham Buckle said: "The whole point of the course is to teach the youngsters to have some self-respect and pride, and show them arson can cause a huge amount of costly and unnecessary damage."

All the youngsters on the course, which is running from Monday to Friday, have been referred by either the youth offending teams, police or Connexions, the youth advice service.

During the course, those taking part will get to take part in fire fighters' duties, including putting out fires using hoses, climbing ladders and going into sewers.

If they complete the course successfully, they receive a certificate from the chief fire officer at a passing out parade on Friday.

It comes as current figures from the Arson Prevention Bureau show there are on average 20 arson attacks on schools in the UK each week, two-thirds of which occur outside term time.

In May last year, Mr Buckle said arsonists who tried to burn down Fulford School, in York, may have been "spurred on" by the Fulford flats fire, which happened the same evening in Hospital Fields Road.

On that occasion, five youngsters broke into the school's first-floor English office through the roof, and started a fire in the music room. But the blaze burnt itself out, causing only slight damage.

The incident was reported in the early hours of May 14, while firefighters were still tackling the flats blaze.

Fulford head teacher Stephen Smith said: "Obviously, whoever, did this might have got the idea from the Fulford Place fire, and copied it."

In March, 1999, fire gutted ten classrooms at Fulford School, including four craft, design and technology (CDT) classrooms, which were refurbished at a cost of £600,000.

Another 15 classrooms had to be cleaned after the blaze caused smoke damage.

The arts and technology building at Woldgate School, in Pocklington, was wrecked by a fire in April, 2003. The blaze started when a plastic waste bin was deliberately set alight.

In the same year, an art room at All Saints' School in York was severely damaged by a fire, originally thought to have been started by a faulty extractor fan, but later believed to have been caused by arson.

In 1997, a blaze tore through Kingsway Junior School, Clifton, after the building was broken into, and a fire was started in one of the classrooms.

Mr Buckle said so far this year, there had not been a major problem with arson attacks on schools in York.

Updated: 10:22 Friday, February 17, 2006