This in from the police, in their own words. Ed
To mark the expansion of Hampshire Constabulary’s successful Volunteer Police Cadet (VPC) Scheme, two people heavily involved in it’s implementation will be taking a part in a tough physical challenge, which will see them cycle or run between all the VPC units around the force area.
Force Cadet Leader, PC Steve Swift, along with Volunteer Cadet Leader, Steve Keenor, will take on what’s being referred to as the VPC Challenge 2014 this Saturday, September 13 and Sunday, September 14. They intend to visit each of the seven new VPC units ending up at Cantell School in Southampton, which was one of the first units to be set up.
Ryde Academy first on the list
There are planned community engagement events at Ryde Academy, Bay House School, King Richards School, Applemore College and Cantell School to which members of the public are invited to come along to offer their support and find out more about their local policing teams as well the Volunteer Police Cadets.
Volunteer police cadets are all aged between 13 to 17 years. They attend a weekly session for two hours per week and volunteer for a minimum of three hours per month in policing and community initiatives. The current cadets have already volunteered more than 1,200 hours over the past five weeks, which shows how committed these young people are to improving the communities they live within.
They will also be holding camps, expeditions and taking part in the Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme.
PC Steve Swift said:
“The scheme provides young people with the opportunity to meet new people, develop leadership skills, and engage with teams across the police force. They have the opportunity to have fun and enhance the lives of other young people while gaining nationally recognised qualifications.
“For me, this is going to be a really tough challenge and I will rely on super fit Steve K to keep me going along the way. We mustn’t lose sight however, of the reason for doing it in the first place and that is to raise the profile of the Hampshire Constabulary Volunteer Police Cadets within the Hampshire and Isle of Wight communities as well as to hopefully raise some valuable funds to ensure that the scheme continues to be open to anyone to apply.
“We pride ourselves in being able to offer the scheme completely free of charge, which is one of its unique qualities. In order to continue though, we need to secure more volunteer leaders and raise additional funding.
“The scheme really can change the lives of young people and give them a sense of belonging within their local communities. Already, we have some fantastic success stories that demonstrate how impactive this type of scheme can be. So, if there is anyone interested in supporting us in any way at all, please do get in touch.
“We’ve been carrying out lots of training for this challenge, but for me it is still probably not enough! We hope people will support us in our endeavours by coming along to the various events being held at the units. There, they’ll be able to find out more about the VPC.”
