The four welsh police forces are taking part in a national weekend to celebrate the special constabulary. The initiative, taking place over the weekend of February 12th and 13th, will promote the work of the special officers and raise the profile of special constables among their local community.
The National Policing Improvement Agency works with ACPO to encourage forces to take part in National Specials Weekend. The NPIA helped set the theme for the weekend as part of its work to encourage more people to become Specials and police volunteers. This year’s theme is the Special Constabulary in the Big Society: highlighting the important role that special constables play in local policing and tackling issues that matter to local communities. There will be a particular emphasis on anti social behaviour and helping the most vulnerable in society.
The special constabulary has been in existence for over 175 years. To join the specials you need to be over 18 years. Special constables have the same duties as police officers and work closely within neighbourhood teams to resolve local issues. There are 739 special constables in Wales.
Each of the four Forces in Wales is carrying out specific initiatives surround the Big Society theme. These include:
South Wales Police Special Constables are working with partner agencies proactively tackling anti social behaviour with a focus on vulnerable victims of anti social behaviour. Mobile units will be set up at key points throughout the community providing advice and support on home security and crime prevention
Officers in North Wales will focus on education, prevention and enforcement in respect of anti social behaviour linking in with school liaison officers and other agencies and targeting local hotspots
Officers in Dyfed Powys will tackle local priorities with a focus on anti social behaviour caused by the night time economy as well as clean up activities the following morning. There are also diversion activities planned for the 11 – 17 year old age group.
Gwent Police is taking the opportunity to introduce an initiative designed to encourage engagement with the most vulnerable members of society – the blind and visually impaired. The initiative, called Special Eyes, has been implemented jointly with the RNIB Cymru and Sight Support, and will link Gwent Police Special Constables with residents in the Gwent force area, who are blind or visually impaired. Once those residents have been identified, Special Constables will visit them on a regular basis to provide them with support including: regular crime prevention advice; updates on local ward priorities and regular security checks on their accommodation. Residents will also be able to report crime and receive referrals for other support services.
Deputy Chief Constable of Gwent Police, Jeff Farrar , is the Special Constabulary lead for the four welsh forces.
“Across Wales and the UK, the special constabulary play a very important role. They are extremely valued in their work and play a huge role in policing their local communities. The weekend provides us with an opportunity to show communities the work special officers do and to thank them publicly for the dedication, in terms of time and effort they make throughout the year,”
“Special Eyes” is an initiative we are hopeful will encourage engagement with one of the most vulnerable groups in society. It has been shown that although there are approximately 3243 registered blind people within the Gwent Force area, a visually impaired person is half as likely to turn to police if they experience verbal and or physical abuse compared to a sighted person. The Special Eyes initiative is especially important so they can access the same policing services as everyone else and to ensure they have a reporting mechanism in place. We are hopeful it will prove very successful and that it can be cascaded throughout Wales”
Sarah Rochira, Director RNIB Cymru said: “Loss of sight is devastating. It destroys lives, families and communities. Many people cannot leave their houses alone, and it’s easy to see how vulnerable this can make people, especially older people, with sight loss. I greatly welcome the Special Eyes initiative, and hope that it will help those who are most vulnerable in our community feel safe in the one place they should feel most secure – their own homes.”
