Year 5 pupils at Galley Hill Primary School in Hemel Hempstead have become the latest youngsters to successfully complete the Constabulary’s Mini Police scheme.
Mini Police is an opportunity for children aged between nine and 11 to learn about community safety, in a fun way which gives young people a voice. It is also a means of engaging children within their communities, promoting responsible citizenship, helping to increase confidence and reduce perceived barriers.
The eight-week programme consists of one hourly visit in school each week and is delivered by Safer Neighbourhood Team police officers and Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs), police cadet leaders, Children and Young People officers and volunteers.
During the two month scheme the pupils learned about topics including anti-social behaviour, road safety and bullying. They also had the chance to look at and try on some items of police uniform and look at police vehicles while learning how they protect serving officers.
Several interactive sessions were held where the youngsters were able to ask questions and they also engaged in a community project learning all about Online Watch Link (OWL), which is a community messaging system which keeps residents informed of what’s happening in their area.
The course was led by Mini Police co-ordinator PCSO Daniel McManus, from the Hemel Hempstead Central Safer Neighbourhood Team. On Friday 12 July, all the pupils were presented with certificates to mark their participation in the scheme.
PCSO McManus said: “I was very impressed by the children’s enthusiasm and they are a very bright bunch. They had great fun becoming Mini Police and it was really rewarding to see them grow in confidence as the course progressed.
“It’s so important for them to know that we are here to help them and they can always come to us if they have a problem. We hope they have enjoyed their time finding out more about what we do and we wish them all the best as they move up to their new school year.”
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