Search for more officers to serve across Thames Valley

A new recruitment campaign is highlighting the range of industries and background people move from to become a police officer, as the force seeks to increase its diversity.

In three years, 368 new police officers have gone on the beat in the Thames Valley and now the force is looking for more.

With extra funding available, TVP have started a recruitment campaign urging possible officers to ‘realise their potential’.

The hope is to increase the diversity within the force as well, to better reflect the communities they serve.

From an initial start on Incident & Crime Response (ICR), options open up to include an investigative career as a Detective (Child Abuse Investigation, Domestic Abuse Investigation, CID, Major Crime, Family Liaison Officer), Firearms, Dog handler, Mounted section, Counter Terrorism, Surveillance, Drone Pilot, Rural Crime, Roads Policing, Public Order, Negotiator, Intelligence and many more.

Thames Valley Police offers entry routes to those interested in becoming a Police Officer for both those with or without a degree.

The starting salary for all new recruits is £26,780 (which includes £2,000 South-East allowance). On the current system, officers can expect to be earning a salary in excess of £40,000 per annum by your seventh year in the job.

TVP say that the officers featured in their new recruitment campaign are proof of how a career in policing at TVP is helping them realise their potential.

Over the last three years, the force has grown with an additional 368 new police officers. Ranged in age from 19 to over 50s, they bring a wide variety of previous life and work experience, including community mental health support, the military, retail and leisure, foster care, the prison service, the travel industry, teaching, animal welfare, as well as university graduates and college-leavers, demonstrating that policing continues to appeal to a wide range of people.

Despite their many differences, new recruits all share a common purpose; to serve the public, protect our communities and keep people safe; it is this natural affinity to help others that TVP are looking for. 

Chief Constable Campbell said: 

“Attracting people from a range of backgrounds will bring different knowledge and expertise and help us to build stronger relationships with the public, enabling us to serve and protect them more effectively.

“We have had success in attracting more women into policing, but realise there is work to do to increase broader diversity within the force.”

TVP is working hard to improve representation within the organization, over the past year almost 50% of new student officers have been women and 10.5% have identified as coming from ethnically diverse backgrounds. Candidates from ethnically diverse backgrounds can link in with their Positive Action and Engagement Team (PAET) for advice and support.

TVP’s PAET is made up of serving officers and focuses on building engagement in under-represented communities, encouraging people from our Black, Asian and Minority-Ethnic communities to consider a career in policing.

As well as focusing on outreach work, the team supports applicants through the recruitment process and subsequently with their professional development and progression once they have joined.