London Police Services is looking for volunteers for their auxiliary police service, and are hoping that some Fanshawe students would be interested in joining.

“The auxiliary police force is a group of volunteers,” explained Constable Byron McNeil, the programs coordinator. “They help with crime prevention, are trained to help during ground searches and can go on ride-alongs with the LPS officers if they chose to.”

Volunteers not only undergo training, which consists of two evenings a week for eight weeks between September and November, but also have several requirements they need to meet before being accepted.

“They need to be Canadian citizens and at least 20-years of age,” explained McNeil. “They also need to have completed four-years of secondary school, be in good health, consent to a complete background investigation, possess a CPR and First Aid certificate and a valid Class G driving license with a good driving record.

“For the training we're just going to cover things like a basic introduction to law, use of force training, they learn about some of our policies and procedures, they learn about the auxiliary forces themselves and different areas of the department as well.

McNeil stressed that the force is looking for people who are willing to commit two years to the program, the first for training, and the second as a volunteer, and for people who are mature, responsible and a team player. And they're not targeting just police foundations students.

“Some of our best auxiliaries are people with established careers,” continued McNeil. “They tend to join more long-term. But we do have some auxiliaries who are looking at policing as a career or some other emergency services, and some have certainly moved on into that field from auxiliary.”

Students who are interested in joining the auxiliary force can download applications at http://www.police.london.ca.