Pupils From Local School Help Student Officers Learn New Skills

Student officers preparing to stop and search pupils as part of an exerciseStudent officer Nigel Bolton practices filling out a stop and search form Pupils from Droitwich Spa High School have helped student officers from West Mercia Police practice their stop and search techniques.

The 20 new student officers - who began their training in May - visited the school on Tuesday, 19 June to put into action what they have learnt on their course so far.

Year 9 pupils from the school assisted the officers in gaining experience of stopping, searching and filling out the form required by law to record details of every stop and search.

Inspector Sarah Corteen from the force's training school at West Mercia Police Headquarters said: "This exercise was really useful in terms of our student officers being able to practically apply their skills, because they need to be able to explain in a straightforward way the reasons for certain police action and, at the same time, maintain positive relations with the public.

"It is vitally important to get stop and search procedures right - failure to do this can lead to an undermining of public confidence and complaints. Stop and search powers are an effective tool in the prevention and detention of crime and police officers need to use them sensitively and responsibly.

"We did a similar exercise with our last student officer intake. It's a great way for our officers to learn how to interact with young people in the community and a good example of how the police and local schools can work together. It also helps to explain to young people - who are often the subjects of stop and search encounters - why it is an important police tactic.

"I would like to thank the staff and pupils from Droitwich Spa High School for their help with this exercise, which was an interactive day enjoyed by both officer and school students alike."