Primary school children are signing up for the exciting new Staffordshire Police Junior Cadets scheme which celebrated its first graduation ceremony in Lichfield District yesterday (Thursday 17 July).
The original Cadet scheme, for 14 to 17-year-olds, was initiated in 2013 by Police and Crime Commissioner Matthew Ellis to strengthen links between police and young people and promote good citizenship. Successful units are already up and running in Cannock, Stafford and Stoke-on-Trent with more soon to follow.
The programme is now expanding with junior Cadet schemes being launched in primary schools for eight to ten-year-olds across Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent. The first Lichfield District-based unit graduated at a special passing-out parade at Little Aston Primary School, Little Aston, yesterday morning.
A specially-selected group of children have taken part in six one-hour sessions, led by local Police Community Support Officers (PCSO) Elaine Sneyd and Danielle Brannan during school time, covering areas including road safety, police investigations and anti-social behaviour.
During an awards assembly the Junior Cadets were presented with certificates for completing the sessions by Staffordshire’s Deputy Police and Crime Commissioner Sue Arnold and Lichfield District’s Local Policing Team (LPT) Commander Inspector Rachel Joyce in front of their parents and fellow pupils. They also received their own pocket books to fill in during sessions along with a Junior Police Cadet baseball cap and t-shirt for completing the course.
Mrs Arnold said: “In just over 12 months the original Cadets scheme has already provided a positive influence to the lives of many young people – some from challenging backgrounds.
“It’s fantastic that primary school children are now becoming Junior Cadets and taking part in a fun-packed programme which teaches them how to become responsible citizens.
“Our aim is to have at least one Junior Cadet scheme in each local policing area so that as many children can benefit as possible.”
The scheme is being run at no cost to the children or their schools with all expenses met by the Staffordshire Commissioner’s Corporate Social Responsibility Fund, a registered charity which is funded by donations from businesses and individuals.
Inspector Joyce said: “We hope that by getting into schools and engaging with these children when they’re young it’ll have a lasting impact. When they’re not being supervised by teachers or parents they’ll understand the impact their actions can have on communities; whether they be vulnerable people, elderly people or whoever.
“I think the scheme’s gone really well at Little Aston Primary, so much so that it’s generated a lot of interest from other primaries in the area and we’ve now got a list of schools wanting to take part too. It’s been a real success.”
The children for the next batch of Junior Police Cadets have already been chosen at Little Aston Primary, which plans to begin in September.
Head teacher Elizabeth Pearce said: “Thanks to this scheme I’ve seen a change in the children’s persona around school. They’re really taking on certain areas of responsibility.
“They’re much more aware of security issues around them and they’re voicing that both to their fellow pupils, and to the wider community outside of school, meaning that thanks to this scheme, they now pro-actively seek to help others. It’s definitely a worthwhile scheme to be part as it helps improve the children’s self-esteem, their sense of responsibility, their independence and their resilience.”
Other schools in the area will soon be establishing their own Junior Police Cadets scheme including Greysbrooke Primary School in Shenstone and St. Peter’s Primary School in Stonnall.
PCSO Sneyd said: “Participation in the scheme will have hopefully built their confidence up. At the start of the scheme we did have a few pupils who were particularly quiet, but who have now started to interact and participate. We also had children that were a little more boisterous, but have now calmed down a little bit, learning to put their hands up and giving more sensible answers.
“Last week when we talked about today’s event they all said they didn’t want it to end, they wanted us to come back after the graduation and teach them something new, so they’re all clearly really happy.”
Businesses are being invited to become Patrons and Sponsors to fund the Cadets Service. In return for becoming a Patron, businesses’ contributions are recognised through publicity, a framed certificate and other opportunities. For more details visit www.staffordshire-pcc.gov.uk/police-cadets
