Special Constable (DP24a) (Volunteer)

Use your spare time to help us fight crime and support your local community!

Our Specials are a vital resource in tackling crime and anti-social behaviour in Derbyshire. Special Constables are dedicated individuals who, after a hard day at work in their regular job, still have the enthusiasm and drive it takes to devote some of their free time to help others.

Specials work alongside regular police officers and Police Community Support Officers to help police their local communities. Their position within the force is therefore very much appreciated and invaluable. They play a key role in crime reduction, detection and incident response by adding additional capacity to the services provided by regular officers. By providing a visible uniformed presence, special constables help to reduce the fear of crime and promote confidence within their local communities.

You will be a uniformed volunteer police officer, with the full range of police powers. To the average person in the street, there is nothing to distinguish that these officers are carrying out the role unpaid and in their spare time. If you’re looking for an exciting new challenge and a unique volunteering experience, look no further.

If successful, your anticipated start date in November 2024. Training will last for 17 weeks and will cover several weekends, Tuesday and Thursday evenings. Training will be delivered online and classroom throughout this period plus self-study. If you are unable to commit to the training timetable or start date, please set up job alerts for the next campaign.

What you'll be doing

• Carrying out high-visibility foot patrols to deter and detect criminals.
• Educating businesses and the community about crime and how to avoid it to reduce crime and people's fear of it happening.
• Talking to schoolchildren about crime reduction and community safety to help them stay safe and make the right choices.
• Confronting anti-social behaviour on the streets such as gangs or intimidating behaviour.
• Managing alcohol-related incidents such as public drunkenness or violence.
• Enforcing road safety laws in local communities.
• Conducting house-to-house enquiries to gather information and support larger enquiries.
• Taking part in police operations to disrupt and arrest offenders.
• Join our Spotlight on Special Constable webinars to find out more about the role and speak to serving officers.                       

The must haves

• 17 ½ years old on application and 18 years old on appointment.
• Must be a UK Citizen, EU Citizen with EU Settled or Pre Settled Status, a Commonwealth Citizen or Foreign National with no restrictions on your stay in the United Kingdom.
• In good health, and of good character.

The recruitment process will consist of:

• National Sift
• Application Form
• Assessment Centre
• Pre-employment Check

What’s in it for you?

At Derbyshire Constabulary, we aim to create an environment that puts people first. We want you to feel supported in everything you do, so you can give your very best. What’s more, we have a range of reward and benefits that if you join us you could enjoy.

Internal Candidates: Did you know that Derbyshire Constabulary offer an Employer Supported Policing (ESP) Scheme? This could grant you up to 8 hours of paid leave per month to volunteer as a Special Constable. Please take a look at Connect for further information or contact the recruitment team!

Next Steps

If we feel like a place where you can belong, we'd love to learn more about you. Please click apply to complete your application.

To support you with your application we have provided some guidance on our recruitment process.

To find out more, register for our upcoming information webinars click here.

• Vacancy closes on Wednesday, 7 May 2024 at 23:55.
• Assessment Centres will be held in May, June and July 2024.

Who we are

Derbyshire Constabulary has a strong and unequivocal commitment to delivering a high-quality policing service for everyone in the county - whether for our one million residents or our ten million visitors to the Peak District. By joining us you'll play a unique role in helping us to keep Derbyshire as one of the safest places to live and work in England.

To understand how you can make Derbyshire safer together visit our careers website.

We welcome applications from individuals from all backgrounds and encourage anyone who has considered a career in policing to apply. We’re particularly keen to increase the number of females and candidates from black and minority ethnic communities and the LGBT community, so that we can truly reflect the communities that we serve in.