Ever wanted to see how things work at a police station – but preferably without the handcuffs?

Dear All, I am a police volunteer, local resident and HOL member and have written this post to encourage others to try out volunteering for the Met. 

The Metropolitan Police Volunteers scheme (MPV) in Haringey is looking for more applicants to join the 30+ team of volunteers already working throughout the borough. MPVs work in police stations helping out with a range of tasks – with most manning front desks at police stations or providing administrative support for different departments such as CID, Police Cadets, Neighbourhood Watch Support or Operational Support.

Lydia Dawson (65) has been volunteering for 5 years doing around 3-4 hours once a week. She initially worked with the Cadets before moving into front counter work at Hornsey Police Station. A long stint at the busy Tottenham Police station front desk followed before she settled to working in Operational Support. Day to day now she deals with the volunteers, helps with organising borough events, assists with routine admin and generally helps wherever possible for the team.

As a retiree, Lydia says the position gives her a focus during the week and keeps her brain active. She is happy to “take the pressure off” the police team leaving them time to concentrate on what they are trained to do. The front counter work especially, she feels, is very much appreciated by the Met and doing it gave her a much better insight into her local community as people come into police stations for “every reason under the sun”.

Also doing front counter duties is Siddiga Receb (24) who has been volunteering for a little over a year. She comes into the Wood Green custody centre for around six hours on one day a week but is not tied into a shift pattern and can choose when she volunteers which is important as she works full time. Siddiga triages people coming into the centre and explains that speaking directly to a person instead of an intercom makes a big difference to both the public and the police. Volunteering has given her a much better understanding of the challenges the police face and what people’s perception of them are.

The recruitment process consists of a form, an interview and then security vetting which means that several months can go by between applying and final acceptance but as volunteering opportunities go, it is unique and well-worth considering.  More information on applying is found here but you must be over 18, live in a London borough and have lived for three years in the UK. For more details and the application form please use this link: https://beta.met.police.uk/careers-at-the-met/police-volunteer-role...