A diverse cohort of 191 new neighbourhood police officers are set to join the Metropolitan Police Service tomorrow (Tuesday 10^th September), after completing their initial training at Police Now’s academy.

The new officers are on Police Now’s two-year National Graduate Leadership Programme, which recruits, trains and develops brilliant and diverse graduates to become neighbourhood officers on the frontline and drive improvements in policing.

This is the first cohort of Police Now’s programme in almost ten years that is wholly dedicated to supporting the Met – the UK’s largest police force. Despite the significant recruitment challenges facing the Met, over 5,000 applications were submitted for this cohort of Police Now’s programme. All those accepted onto the programme demonstrated their strong motivation for driving positive change across London and tackling the well reported cultural challenges facing the force.

Police Now consistently recruits more diversity into policing than the national average and typically recruits those who hadn’t previously considered a career in policing– delivering essential difference into the service. Of those recruited to this cohort of the National Graduate Leadership Programme, 45% of officers identify as female and 30% are from ethnic minority backgrounds, including 10% from Black heritage backgrounds, with a total of 39 languages spoken across the cohort.

Policing Minister Dame Diana Johnson said: “I am delighted to see this new diverse group of officers joining our police, supported by Police Now’s expert training.

“They are joining at a time when we are introducing our Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee, and I know the skills they have learned will be instrumental as we restore neighbourhood policing.

“These officers have a unique opportunity to drive positive change across London, and I wish them every success.”

Deputy Assistant Commissioner Helen Millichap of the Metropolitan Police Service said: “We are delighted to welcome over 190 new officers who have successfully completed their initial training at the Police Now academy.

“These officers will play an integral role in achieving the priorities laid out in the new Met for London plan; strengthening local policing teams and focusing on the issues that matter most to Londoners.”

The officers were attested at Police Now’s training academy in July and have spent the last seven weeks developing their core policing skills and knowledge, preparing to serve and protect London. They completed the academy on Friday (6^th September) and will now land in the Met to continue their frontline training, before joining neighbourhood policing teams across the capital for the remainder of the programme. Over the next two years and beyond, they will be supported by Police Now and their force colleagues to reduce crime and anti-social behaviour and build public confidence in policing.

Police Now was founded in 2014 and is an independent organisation, supporting policing to innovate and diversify. Uniquely positioned to support the sector as the only national recruitment pipeline into policing and a Times Top 100 Graduate Employer, Police Now has partnered with 36 forces across England and Wales and recruited over 3,000 officers into the service.