A nine-year-old boy is in hospital after being struck by a police car responding to reports of a fire in a suburban park.

The young pedestrian was hit about 7.20pm on Monday on the Pacific Highway in St Leonards, on Sydney’s lower north shore, while officers were responding to a fire at a nearby park, police said.

“When a marked police vehicle from North Shore Police Area Command arrived at Pacific Highway, near Christie Street, a child was struck by the police vehicle,” NSW Police said.

Officers gave first aid to the boy before paramedics arrived at the scene.

The nine-year-old was taken to the Sydney Children’s Hospital in Randwick in a stable condition.

The driver — a male senior constable — was given a roadside breath test and returned a negative result, police said.

A crime scene has been established and police are investigating the circumstances of the crash.

-AAP