AN ALLOA park was turned into a classroom last week to allow schoolchildren to learn about Purple Pinkie Day. 

For World Polio Day, which took place on October 24, children from Park PS and St Mungo's PS came together in Wimpy Park to learn about Purple Pinkie day, which aims to raise awareness of Polio. 

Polio is a serious virus that is spread between people and can result in paralysis as it affects the spinal cord; however, in the UK a person's chances of getting the virus are low as most people have been vaccinated against it. 

The campaign is run by the Rotary Club and is aptly named Purple Pinkie Day because after receiving their polio immunisations, young people's little fingers are marked purple so that healthcare professionals know who has been immunised. 

Children at the event had their little fingers marked purple to show that they had taken part in the event and to reference the international sign that a young person has been vaccinated against polio. 

The 70 children and staff made their way around the park visiting six stations as they went. At each station, a rotarian was there to teach them about what polio is, why it is a problem and what is happening to permanently eradicate the virus. 

Alloa and Hillfoots Advertiser: There were only eight cases of the wild polio virus worldwide this year. There were only eight cases of the wild polio virus worldwide this year. (Image: The Rotary Club)

Each group then built up a folder of information which they took back to their schools to teach other pupils about polio. 

Lindsey Spowage, rotary club president, said: “Thirty five years ago when Rotary and our partners pledged to end polio now, 350,000 people every year were being infected, and since then 20 million have been saved from the disease.

"This year, there have been only eight cases of the wild polio virus reported in the entire world, but until we can get that number down to zero for at least three years, the disease is still with us. We all need to work hard to achieve that goal.”