Working with the Police; volunteering opportunities and challenges

Jenny Kent, MSDS Marine & Police Volunteer
During recent years, most Police Forces across the UK have developed Heritage Crime Officers, often within wider Rural Crime Teams. At the same time, many have also recruited a broadening range of specialist Police Volunteer roles.
This paper will look at the opportunities, and challenges, for Heritage Professionals interested in getting involved in this field. Drawing on personal experience and with reference to other models in other forces, the author will explore how heritage crime volunteers can bring valuable expertise to a range of roles and areas of police activity.
Volunteer roles can help with intelligence gathering, crime prevention strategies through to assisting in searches and developing evidence to support prosecutions. The approaches taken by different forces can vary widely and sharing volunteer experience and practice can help to develop roles and opportunities in the future.