Mansfield hosts a Mini Police National Conference to help support families and communities

Nottinghamshire police have been reinforcing community bonds with families by hosting a Mini Police National Conference at Mansfield police station.
Nottinghamshire police have been hosting a Mini Police National Conference at Mansfield police station.Nottinghamshire police have been hosting a Mini Police National Conference at Mansfield police station.
Nottinghamshire police have been hosting a Mini Police National Conference at Mansfield police station.

The inaugural event was attended by representatives from many forces who host their own Mini Police forces - an initiative initially launched in Durham in 2011 - as a way of engaging with children aged 9-11, and building positive relationships between police and families making a positive impact on communities.

Those in attendance included staff and officers from forces including Lincolnshire, Durham, Avon and Somerset, Merseyside, South Yorkshire and the City of London.

The event was opened by Ed Sherry from the Volunteer Police Cadets, followed by presentations by Dr Iain Britton and Dr Matt Callender from the Institute of Public Safety on gathering data at a national level to evaluate the impact of the scheme on young people and their communities.

This was followed by presentations from each force on how their own Mini Police are coming along, what kind of activities they are undertaking and how forces can all work together to benefit and support each other’s projects.

Looking forward, Nottinghamshire’s Mini Police National Conference team are going to be attending sessions on cyber-bullying, spending an afternoon at a residential home for the elderly, and there will also be a visit from the People’s Dispensary for Sick Animals.

The event has also been in addition to welcoming two new schools to the Mini Police cohort including Greenwood Primary School in the Meadows and Bishop Alexander Academy in Newark.