North Hertfordshire College joins Hertfordshire Constabulary's Employer Supported Policing Scheme

Hertfordshire Constabulary have welcomed North Hertfordshire College as new members of their Employer Supported Policing Scheme (ESP).

As part of their Staff Development Day, employees of the college were able to talk to the police and learn more about the scheme and what it means to volunteer in policing.

College Principal, Kit Davies and one of the college's employees Jason Briers, who is also a Special Constable, attended the event to encourage more people to consider 'giving back' to the community through volunteering now that the college is supporting them through the scheme. 

ESP is an active, powerful and innovative way for an organisation and the police service to work proactively together to help make communities a safer place to live, work and study. The national ESP scheme is free to any company wishing to join and is fully funded by the Home Office as well as being endorsed by Hertfordshire's Police and Crime Commissioner David Lloyd. 

In his Criminal Justice Plan for Hertfordshire, Mr Lloyd said: "Keeping Hertfordshire safe is everybody's business and organisations can play their part by supporting employees to become Special Constables to help keep our communities safer places to work, live and study."

Under the ESP scheme, staff who are already serving or want to volunteer as a Special Constable, are typically allowed some paid time off to carry out some of their duties or additional training during their normal working hours. They will have trained as a police officer with full police powers gaining valuable transferrable skills and experience that will always reflect back to and benefit their 'day job', as well as an understanding of community safety and the law.

Alicia Loxley, who is the ESP Lead for Hertfordshire Constabulary, said: "ESP allows police to learn about the issues which matter to local businesses and offers benefits in terms of staff wellbeing and development, as well as recruitment and retention. In addition to promoting corporate social responsibility, ESP is a great way for organisations not only to demonstrate that they are a responsible business but to also actively provide their employees with greater flexibility to support policing in the community through volunteering."

For more information about this scheme or becoming a Special Constable, please contact [email protected].