GMP celebrates International Volunteer Day

Today is International Volunteer Day which provides an opportunity for Greater Manchester Police to show the contributions volunteer officers and staff make to the communities of Greater Manchester.

Our Citizens in Policing programme consists of Special Constables, Police Support Volunteers and Volunteer Police Cadets and Leaders who enable the Force to engage and involve volunteers as part of our policing family.

With 248 Special Constables, 115 Police Support Volunteers, plus our 168 Volunteer Police Cadet Cadets currently supporting us, they make a huge difference to the communities of Greater Manchester.

In the last 12 months, Special Constables gave 81,000 voluntary hours to policing the communities of Greater Manchester and our Police Support volunteers gave over 7,500 voluntary hours to supporting police work.

Hear from some of our volunteers:

Karen has been a Police Support Volunteer for nearly 2 years, having retired as a police officer.  She provides support with the training in the Hostage and Crisis Negotiation Unit.

Karen said: “Although I was ready to step down from my role as a police officer, I wasn’t ready to sever ties completely from GMP. By becoming a Police Support Volunteer, I still feel part of the policing family but without the early starts, late finishes, and the emergency deployments in the middle of the night!

“It’s very rewarding helping with negotiator training. Officers start their courses not really knowing what to expect but by the end they are competent to deploy to ‘life at risk’ incidents. I feel proud to be part of the team that causes this transformation.”

Karen, Police Support Volunteer - Hostage and Crisis Negotiation Unit

Malcolm has been a Special Constable for 7 years, and volunteered over 700 hours to policing in GMP last year.

Malcolm says: “My interest to join was rekindled by seeing my son undertake the role of a Special. Upon retiring, I made enquiries to see if there was an age limit on joining the Specials, and to my delight there wasn't!  So, I decided to see if I could make the ‘grade’ and fulfil my ambition to be a Police Officer, which I am pleased to say I achieved.

“Every time I put on my uniform, I feel a great sense of pride and achievement.

Becoming a Special Constable is one of the best decisions that I have taken.”

Malcom, Special Constable

Ronan is a cadet in our Volunteer Police Cadet programme and said: “Being a Volunteer Police Cadet has developed my confidence, enabled me to make new friendships and increased my trust in the Police.

“The skills I am learning will help me develop towards achieving my future aspiration of becoming a Police Officer.”

To find out more about our Citizens in Policing, visit our website: How you can volunteer | Greater Manchester Police (gmp.police.uk)