Cadet Leader - Volunteer

Closing date: Tuesday 30th April 2024

About the Role:

Are you looking for a Leadership challenge where you can make a real difference to the young people within the West Midlands?

Are you looking to inspire and motivate others?

Why not be a role model and an inspiration to our Police Cadets by becoming a Cadet Leader.

As a Cadet Leader you volunteer your own time to be part of one of our Cadet units across the West Midlands. Locations includes Birmingham, Coventry, Sandwell, Dudley, Wolverhampton, Walsall and Solihull.

Cadet units meet one evening a week for 2 hours and the Cadets gain insight into various departments within the force and learn a wide range of skills. They follow a curriculum based around active citizenship, Police Studies, wellbeing & personal development, diversity & inclusion and the world around them, as well as attending community events and taking part in activities.

Qualifications:

You do not need to work for West Midlands Police. Our Cadet Leaders are made up of people who are retired, in full- or part-time work, and those that are currently unemployed. We are looking for volunteers from all walks of life who are able to give just a few hours a month to volunteering. You will have valuable skills and experience that will help Cadets prepare for their future careers.

You need to show you have:

• Good interpersonal and communication skills
• The ability to motivate and engage young people from a range of cultural backgrounds
• Lead, team build and maintain discipline
• Confidence to deliver sessions

You will receive training which covers professional standards, public protection safeguarding and additional information to support you in the role. This training is mandatory

Prospective officers and staff must be held to a higher standard of behaviour and accountability than members of the public, and that therefore their right to privacy can be fettered in certain circumstances. This is to ensure that members of the police are fully aware and accountable for the unique powers entrusted to them and the standards of professional behaviour they swear to uphold. 

Hours

Due to the nature of the role you need to be able to commit to the role for a minimum of a year, to volunteer your time primarily on term –time weekdays once a week during the late afternoon/early evening. There may also be events and development sessions during school holidays and weekends.

We are looking for volunteers to commit at least 12 hours per month ideally for a minimum of 12 months. Times and days to be agreed with the department supporting the volunteer.

Vetting

Successful applicants will be required to pass police vetting and an enhanced DBS check. You must also be able to provide 2 references for the role.

Useful information

You may be able to claim travel expenses in line with the Volunteers expenses policy. 

Contact

For further information please email cadets@westmidlands.police.uk

 

 

 

POLICE CADETS SAFEGUARDING POLICY

 

 

West Midlands Police Cadets Safeguarding Statement.

The Volunteer Police Cadet (VPC) scheme is a national programme designed to provide a safe and secure environment where young people can meet with others and learn about policing and policing issues, contribute to community initiatives and take part in police organised activities and events. Allowing young people to have fun is at the heart of the experience too.

West Midlands Police is a provider of the VPC scheme through a number of Cadet Units across the force area. Each unit has a leader team comprising of police staff, police officers and adult volunteers, who follow policies, programme and procedures overseen by the Citizens in Policing Team, based at Lloyd House.

Our police cadets and the police staff, police officers and adult volunteers who support our cadet units all come from a wide variety of different backgrounds, so we will all uphold the highest standards in safeguarding and supervising our children, young people and adults at risk.

We will ensure that everyone involved in our Volunteer Police Cadet scheme knows what is expected of them, so that we can promote trust and confidence in what we do in our young people and the adult support networks that surround them.

We will build and maintain a culture where our young people and vulnerable adults are respected and listened to, know what safeguarding matters are and how they can confidently report any concerns they may have.

We will give equal priority to keeping our young people and adults at risk safe from all types of harm and abuse,  regardless of their age, disability, gender reassignment, race, religion, belief, sex or sexual orientation (all defined as protected characteristics within the Equality Act 2010).

We will ensure that all of our VPC staff and leader teams are checked and vetted by us prior to being able to participate in cadet unit work and activities, and will undergo a programme of continuous training for as long as they support the cadet scheme.

Our Safeguarding Policy and Safer Recruitment Policy are available for anyone to access and read and can be accessed here    Safeguarding Statement | Volunteer Police Cadets (vpc.police.uk)

Our Designated Safeguarding Officer for West Midlands Police is is is Chief Superintendent Richard Harris or Helen Fenton, Citizens in Policing Manager .

 

 If you or anyone you know has any concerns about the safety or wellbeing of anyone involved in our VPC scheme, then please contact us Cadets@westmidlands.police.uk or alternatively you can contact:

National Safeguarding Manager for Volunteer Police Cadets at: vpc.safeguarding@vpc.police.uk

The NSPCC helpline 0800 800 5000 or email  help@nspcc.org.uk

The Independent Office for Police Conduct 0300 020 0096 or cadets@policeconduct.gov.uk

West Midlands Police is a Disability Confident Leader - the highest level an organisation can achieve under the scheme run by the Department of Work and Pensions.  As part of our commitment we operate a ‘Disability Confident Interview Scheme’ - all candidates who declare a disability and meet the essential criteria for the role will be offered an interview. 

It is important to note that there may be occasions where it is not practicable or appropriate to interview all disabled people who meet the essential criteria for the job. For example: in certain recruitment situations such as high-volume, seasonal and high-peak times, the employer may wish to limit the overall numbers of interviews offered to both disabled people and non-disabled people. In these circumstances, the employer could select the candidates who best meet the essential criteria for the job, as they would do for non-disabled applicants.

"Diversity and Inclusion Vision:  Maximise the potential of people from all backgrounds through a culture of fairness and inclusion to deliver the best service for our communities"