CHILDREN put their fire safety training to the test when they were challenged to escape from a house filled with smoke.

The youngsters, from St Mary’s Primary School, in Southam Road, Banbury, were put in a life-sized fire service training house – and did not know what was going to happen.

Suddenly smoke appeared inside the house and the pupils, aged five and six, had to put their training to use by escaping safely and calling firefighters.

The exercise, part of a campaign run by the Fire Fighters Charity, used disco-style dry ice rather than real smoke.

Over the past few months, fire officers have visited schools around the county to teach children how to prepare for emergencies in their own home.

It follows a nationwide campaign aiming to reduce the number of children killed in fires across the UK each year.

Statistics show 29 children under the age of 11 are killed in fires every year, and about 1,100 are injured.

Oxfordshire fire officer Chris Wilson said: “Firefighters do whatever it takes to rescue someone from a fire even if it means they lose their own life.”