Police cadets in the United Kingdom


Volunteer Police Cadets is a nationally recognised uniformed police youth organisation which operates in most parts of the United Kingdom. It is one of several cadet youth organisations including the Army Cadet Force, Sea Cadets, Royal Marine Cadets, Air Training Corps and Fire Cadets. The Police Cadets teach young people skills in policing, and some may assist police officers with low-risk activities. The purpose of the VPC is not to recruit police officers of the future, but to encourage the spirit of adventure and good citizenship among its members.
The Police Cadets were founded in their current form by the Metropolitan Police Service in 1988 and are organised based on the territorial police forces. Membership is open to youths aged 13–18, and some branches include Junior Volunteer Police Cadets for those aged 10–13. Though advertised as giving an "insight" into British policing, it does not guarantee future employment.
The aims of the VPC are:
  • To promote a practical understanding of policing among all young people.
  • To encourage the spirit of adventure and good citizenship.
  • To support local policing priorities through volunteering and give young people a chance to be heard.
  • To inspire young people to participate positively in their communities.

    History

Police cadets were introduced in 1948, consisting of full-time frontline employees who were aged 16–19; changes were made to the new system in 1959. These Police Cadets had no powers of arrest but were able to assist their senior colleagues in many practical matters, such as taking statements, directing traffic, or offering crime prevention advice, as well as observing the work of their supervisors. In the late 1960s, Police Cadet training was revised and a national programme of intensive 10 month residential Cadet Training was introduced*. The courses provided Cadets with a mix of academic training together with outward bound, orienteering, self defence, swimming, martial arts and other sporting activity training. Military standard drill training was also a feature of Cadet training. On reaching the age of 19, on completion of both Residential and local divisional / departmental training,successful Cadets were then appointed as Probationary Police Constables and continuing their training as such for a further two years. Most forces disbanded Cadet training by the early 1990s. Note that Cadets were paid a full time wage for the period of their training, with deductions towards the cost of their residential training taken from their monthly pay. *Periods served as Police Cadets did not count towards Police Service for long service awards or pension purposes.

Metropolitan Police

The Metropolitan Police was one of the first to introduce a cadet corps or force in 1948, intended to boost then-low recruitment levels. Granted its first commandant Andrew Croft in 1960, the Metropolitan Police Cadet Corps or Force was based originally in the former RAF Hendon buildings on Aerodrome Road and Police Cadets were all male aged 16 to 19 and they were paid a salary. They initially served two 'school terms' at Hendon and then transferred to another establishment at Ashford Kent until the first 'term' after their 18th birthday when they were attached to one of four Cadet Centres at Kingsbury, Sunbury, Norwood and Wanstead.
In 1968 the Hendon Police Cadet College opened on the corner of Aerodrome Road and Colindale Avenue almost directly opposite the gates to RAF Hendon. This was part of a wider transformation of the former RAF Hendon, with a new housing estate begun in 1970 and the new Peel Centre opened for police training in 1974. Serving cadets from the Metropolitan Police, Kent Police and Royal Ulster Constabulary, the new Cadet College building consisted of a purpose-built gymnasium, four accommodation blocks and an administration and training building. There was a large parade ground for the cadets to practice their drill.
In 1980 the ITV television network aired The Squad, a drama series which followed the fictional adventures of Metropolitan Police Cadets. The twelve episodes were produced by Thames Television.

1988 – Present Form

The present form of Police Cadets began in 1988. It was a community initiative that was supported by Commissioner Peter Imbert, who wanted to engage with young people. The first documented Volunteer Police Cadet unit started in South Norwood in March 1988. This unit later moved to Paul Breen Section House in Sydenham and becoming known as 4 Area Cadets and then later becoming Lewisham Volunteer Police Cadets when policing aligned to London Boroughs in the early 2000’s.

Organisation

All of the territorial police forces of England and Wales have a corresponding VPC branch, as does the British Transport Police. These are subdivided into local branches. There is a separate but similar scheme in Scotland called the Police Scotland Youth Volunteers, but no equivalent scheme exists in Northern Ireland.
The VPC is supported by a team, led by Chief Constable Shaun Sawyer of Devon & Cornwall Police. The team have developed the National Police Chiefs' Council supported framework, sharing the common Aims and Principles of the VPC programmes operating in police forces across the UK.
They support the VPC through funding; developing resources and training; producing opportunities for cadets and leaders. Sharing good practice amongst VPC members ensures police engagement and education of cadets, recognising the role of young people within their communities and policing.

Activities

Units normally meet at a local school or community venue once a week and are led by police officers, police staff and volunteers. In addition cadets develop their leadership skills by undertaking challenging social action projects in their communities with an expectation that they will volunteer three hours a month. Examples of these projects include supporting older members of the community in understanding cybercrime, fundraising for charities and road safety campaigns.
Cadets learn about:
VPC teams also take part in many events and activities in their communities, such as the London Marathon, Notting Hill Carnival, Remembrance Sunday and Armed Forces Day parades.
Cadets also take part in the Duke of Edinburgh's Award and from 2019 will have the opportunity to participate in the UK Youth Achievement Awards.
Police Cadets have no special powers. Unlike the previous full-time cadets, they rarely assist the police in actual policing activities, and are never sent to high-risk situations.
Once they reach the age of 14, cadets may go out in public with police officers to take part in low-risk policing activities. Undercover cadets have been used to test if shops are willing to sell alcohol, tobacco, vapes and weapons to underage customers. They may also assist policing at large public events and provide crime prevention advice to local residents and businesses.

Uniform

There is no standardised uniform for the Police Cadets, with each parent police service providing their own uniform design. Generally, the uniforms avoid bearing too much resemblance to the uniforms of police officers, police community support officers, and other enforcement officers. They have tended to use badged polo shirts, a formal uniform shirt with epaulettes bearing VPC insignia or cadet rank bars, and a beret, peaked cap, or baseball cap. Cadets are also issued with trousers and a fleece or coat.
Police cadets are issued with their uniform and do not have to finance any part of it. After they leave the VPC, uniform should be returned to stores.
Some cadets wear black ties and wear a brassard on their right arm.
Other Forces issue their VPCs with a light blue or red tie.
In Cambridgeshire, cadets usually wear a black polo shirt, trousers and boots, with the force crest on the upper left side of the polo shirt and fleece; on certain occasions, a white long- or short-sleeve shirt is worn with a light blue tie and epaulettes ; when outdoors, a black peaked cap with a blue band is worn - female cadets used to be issued with similar bowler hats. However, in Sussex their uniform is similar to a police officer's, with white shirt, tie, epaulettes, black trousers, and black shoes. They also have cadet jackets and a high visibility jacket. In Hertfordshire, cadets were issued with a light blue V-neck sweater, which had the county emblem embroidered on it. The Hertfordshire scheme has now changed and cadets wear a uniform similar to regular police officers, but with the word "cadet" embroidered on epaulette rank slides instead of a collar number and similarly the word "cadet" on the left breast reflective strip instead of the word "police".

Ranks

The highest rank is Head Police Cadet, with a Head Police Cadet normally having two deputies to assist them and temporarily act as their replacement if necessary. A Head Police Cadet is akin to a Chief Constable in a structural sense as the Head Police Officer and is often viewed as ‘the Chief Cadet’ and a potential future Chief Constable.
Ranks within Volunteer Police Cadet schemes vary considerably across Great Britain. Cadets appointed Mayor's Cadets are given a special badge or epaulettes to wear.
The epaulette is arranged in the order:
  • Epaulette pin
  • Phonetic code of the London Borough
  • V.P.C band
  • Metal bar
The Volunteer Police Cadets have a few positions above the V.P.C standard ranks for people over the age of 18, such as:
  • V.P.C Supervisor BandOver 18s who still want to assist in Cadets as Volunteer Police Cadet Leaders
  • V.P.C Staff BandFor actively serving police officers who wear the V.P.C Uniform, which is fairly uncommon

    Hampshire Constabulary

The Hampshire Constabulary Volunteer Police Cadet programme is divided into units consisting of around thirty cadets with a head cadet, deputy head cadet and team leaders. The rank insignia is worn on epaulettes on the shirts for formal occasions or ironed onto polo shirts which are used for less formal occasions. In 2018, Hampshire, Thames Valley Police, Sussex and Surrey standardised on uniforms and rank slides within the South East region.