With all the recent criticism of the Police Service, you'd be forgiven for thinking that nobody would want to be a Police Officer these days, but that is far from the reality. In the Metropolitan Service, thousands applied during their last recruitment campaign & this sector has frozen new recruitment until it can deal with all existing applications. The one area that is an exception is in ethnic minority recruitment. The London Census 2001 showed that many areas of our capital, like Brent, Harrow and Tower Hamlets are now Asian population "hot spots", so it is hardly surprising that the service is keen to have more Asian Officers policing in these areas.

PC Bhimji Vekaria, Community Officer in Harrow, was instrumental in helping to set up the Metropolitan Police Hindu Association (MPHA) last year, and clearly relishes his role in bringing about rapid change in the service. "The service offers a great opportunity for young Asians," he said "I started my Police career relatively late. I didn't join until I was 29 having spent my early career in retailing." His parents were not supportive of this career choice either. "I think they did not realise how exciting and challenging the Service is. I guess they were influenced by Bollywood films and the system in India".

Vekaria, who is from the Kutchi community from Gujarat (India), currently fulfils three roles: principally as a Community Officer, as a first aid trainer for the area and in assisting recruitment. His beat covers the broad geographic area of Queensbury, Kingsbury, Harrow and he works in a division with four hundred other officers in the region. "I love community policing as it is a varied role right in the heart of the community. As a police officer you are multi-skilled; you can spend time on the beat with a partner, or be called into Central London to police parades like the Rugby World Cup Team winners one last week. We are involved with investigating persistent offences and working with the community in resolving these." Such offences can include unsociable behaviour, advice on security for local businesses and religious groups, working with youth groups, schools and faith groups.

Vekaria believes that the Police Service offers greater variety than other careers; typically recruits spend 18 weeks training, 10 weeks working within a borough (ward), a further 2 years on probation covering various roles before being placed in a full-time position. Career progression can be rapid too. "There are clear career paths within the Police Service. Promotion is currently based on exams and the individual's own ambition," states Vekaria, "a lot of people have an idea that policing is a violent job with unsociable hours, but the truth is that you get excellent training to ensure that you minimise your exposure to violence and can assess risk. There is also flexibility in the hours that you work".

He did his training at Hendon and has since spent his time within the Harrow Ward: 2 years in a probationary role, 1 year in investigating retail crime and 6 months on investigating robbery crimes before joining the Community Action Team where he has been for the last 3 years. He clearly enjoys the job, although a typical working week is forty hours, Vekaria frequently attends evening meetings of faith groups, recruitment fairs and out-of-hours events. About to move to another role, he sees himself taking the National Police Exams and progressing upwards at his own pace in the next 2-5 years. "The hours police officers need to work are "family friendly" and the Service does recognise that officers may have religious commitments. Personally I think it is up to the individual to decide how quickly they want to take exams and progress up the ladder".

CAREER PROGRESSION UNDER INTENSE SCRUTINY

Career progression within the Police Service has come under intense scrutiny. In England and Wales, fewer than three per cent of the police officers were from black and ethnic minority groups in 2002, compared with 8.6 per cent of the population, and they were more likely to be constables than in the higher ranks. In the MPS region, only 5.5% of the total in March 2003 were from a black or ethnic minority group, against a target of 7.9 per cent set for this date. Clearly this raises many questions. Why are so few black and ethnic minority people joining the service? What are the barriers to their progression? And most importantly what can be done?

Vekaria is clear that the issues about recruitment are straightforward "Traditionally Asians have not recognised a career in the Police Service as a viable one, but it is a secure job, with variety, good rate of pay, excellent training and perks."

The pay scale within the Service nationwide is generous; starting at £19K and rising to £22K after two years for Constables, Sergeant's salaries are based on years of service and start at £30K and rise to about £33K. Inspector's pay ranges from £38-£41K outside London and £40K-£43K in London. There is an occupational health scheme, a pension and 21-29 days holiday (depending on length of service). In addition to the basic pay, a regional allowance of: £1,000 is paid in Bedfordshire, Hampshire and Sussex. £2,000 is paid in Essex, Hertfordshire, Kent, Surrey and Thames Valley and £4,338 is paid as a London allowance. There is also a competence related threshold payment to the most experienced and professional officers, currently worth £1,002 per year. For those in the Metropolitan Service other benefits include free rail travel within a 70-mile radius of London and access to sports and social clubs.

The MPHA is one of several faith groups set up within the Service to encourage social interaction between officers of the same faith and also to provide the Service with information regarding culture and religion. There are currently about 200 serving Hindus in the Metropolitan Service and about 40 have actively joined the MPHA. "The social aspect of the group is important, the MPHA is not about divisiveness and we do not replace any of the existing sources of employee support. We are really there to provide input and help formulate guidelines".

Faith groups are proving effective and the Service is currently re-evaluating its examinations and recruitment process in conjunction with them.

Vekaria is optimistic about his own career path. The Service's High Potential Development Scheme is a fast-track route to some of the most challenging managerial jobs in the Service. Senior officers in the police service need to be able to undertake a variety of specialist roles, including:

• leading and managing people
• managing budgets
• taking control of incidents
• handling a wide range of complex policing issues

Successful candidates have a structured career path to equip them with the skills and knowledge needed in this challenging and rewarding environment. Personal and academic development goes hand in hand with operational experience. The four-step selection process is open to all and there are no limits set on numbers of successful candidates for the scheme.

"I'm thinking about taking the National Police exams in the next couple of years and, hopefully progressing to Sergeant level thereafter", Vekaria adds, "it is good that self-learning and access to training courses, like the advanced driving course, are now available much earlier. It helps officers learn quickly and progress more rapidly than before."

ETHNIC MINORITIES ARE VICTIMS OF CRIME TOO

The British Crime Survey, which began to monitor black and minority ethnic perspectives of crime in year 2000, has reported some startling figures. People from black and ethnic minority groups are more at risk of household crime than other groups; they are also more at risk of being a victim of mugging than white groups and 33% of Asian and 28% of black respondents felt worried about racial attacks compared to only 5% of white respondents.

Nearly 10,000 racially aggravated offences were reported to the Metropolitan Service in 2002/03. More than 3,000 of these were crimes of violence and more than 1,400 were racially aggravated criminal damage. The rest were racial harassment incidents.

It is hardly surprising, therefore that the primary aim of the Service is to have more ethnic minority officers working in areas with a high ethnic population. Vekaria is clear that being Asian in the Harrow Ward - whose population comprises nearly thirty percent of Asians - is a distinct advantage. "Offenders will always use the race card, even on things like being stopped for jumping a red light," he said, "when they see me, it is obvious that it is not a race issue".

His own concerns are about the under reporting of crime among the Asian community. In his ward, many Asian victims are relieved to see him and the ability to communicate in Gujarati is a benefit particularly among the elderly residents. He, and his colleagues in the MPHA plan to work on issues like the under-reporting of crime in the region.

Vekaria himself rarely comes across racism within the Service "there is lack of knowledge about the religious significance of events, dates, deities and even dress, but with my colleagues at the MPHA we are trying to make more information available to all". The formation of the group has also given him added responsibility. "There have been no barriers and I have been left to get on with the job. There is a lot of consultation and cooperation between the Service and the group and this will benefit everybody."

THERE'S NEVER BEEN A BETTTER TIME TO JOIN

The shortened application process to join the Service is another benefit. It took about 18 months when Vekaria started his career, but has now been shortened to three to six months. Those from ethnic minority groups may also get fast-tracked depending on their skills. Vekaria's advice to young Asians is that there has never been a better time to join the Police Service. "Go for it!" he urges.

A sentiment echoed by Sir John Stevens, Commissioner of the Metropolis who states, "There has never been a more exciting or demanding time to become a Metropolitan Police officer. Policing a city of the size and complexity of London with such a large and diverse population is a challenge we are facing head-on. The Met needs officers of the highest calibre and commitment to meet that challenge and help us achieve our goal of making London the safest major city in the world."

INTERESTED IN LEARNING MORE?

Click here to learn about joining the Police Service and for checking out latest vacancies in the Service throughout the country.
Click here to learn about the Metropolitan Police Service
Click here to read about the Metropolitan Police Hindu Association.