Eighteen new police constables land in West Midlands Police today (Monday 7^th November), where they will work to transform communities, reduce crime and anti-social behaviour, and build public confidence in the police service as neighbourhood police officers.  

The new officers have just completed Police Now’s National Graduate Leadership Programme academy, where they were equipped with the core knowledge and skills required of a police constable. The seven-week residential academy trained 148 new police constables, who all land in their respective forces across the country today and are part of over 2,450 officers who have been recruited nationally by Police Now to date.  

The officers were selected out of thousands of applicants to Police Now’s programme, which recruits, trains and develops outstanding and diverse graduates with a commitment to public service and a belief in the enormous positive social change that exceptional community policing can deliver. 

The officers will now continue to develop their leadership and problem-solving skills in force for the remainder of the two-year programme and beyond. They will also work towards their Graduate Diploma in Professional Policing Practice, in partnership with Liverpool John Moores University.  

Police Constable Antonia Morgan, who has just completed the academy and joins West Midlands Police today via the programme, said: “The Police Now academy has been a very enjoyable and informative experience. The academy is challenging in parts but with the assistance and experience of the Police Now tutors, it has made the process smooth and provided a pathway to transition into being a full-time neighbourhood police officer. I am looking forward to joining West Midlands Police and making a positive impact on communities and supporting victims of crime.”

The new officers were trained at the academy by experienced officers seconded from Police Now’s partner forces, including Acting Police Sergeants Andrew Lavanchy and Innayah Aziz from West Midlands Police.

A/PS Innayah Aziz said: “It has been an absolute pleasure training, teaching and leading the eighth cohort of officers on the National Graduate Leadership Programme through their journey into policing. It has been fantastic seeing the participants grow throughout academy and their field training, they have demonstrated dedication, resilience, and commitment and I know all 18 officers will be true role models in West Midlands Police.”

Applications for Police Now’s National Graduate Leadership Programme are currently open. To read more about the impact that Police Now officers are making nationally, please see their latest Impact Report here.