Police officers based at school

[minesawine]

I have just found out the the school my DS1 will start in September has a permanent onsite police officer. This was not mentioned at all in the presentation and parent visits. Should I be worried? Do lots of schools have police officers based there? What do they actually do? Also a friend of mine has a DD in a different school that has regular police raids and the kids have to walk through metal detectors. Maybe I am being naive but my DS1's primary school was simple and stress free and now I am scared!!!

Maybe its a 'full service extended school' in which case they will probably also have a range of healthcare professionals or social workers permanently based there.

If so it is about the school being a prominent building in the centre of a community where all of these services can co-locate, and it is about serving the community as much as/more than the school.

It is extremely common in inner London anyway. There was even a dedicated police officer at a local primary school my kids attended - they mainly dealt with idiotic parents parking on the pedestrian crossing. There is a police officer attached to one of my childrens current schools which is an outstanding comp. It doesn't mean that there is a hotbed of crime.

I think it is a means of liaison between the school and local police and community. I was advised by the school to report the harassment in the street and online by a mentally ill parent towards my child and their friends to the local police for example, as the school couldn't otherwise take my word for it.

The school get told about any incidents involving pupils of the school. They also liaise with local shopkeepers and residents over shoplifting and petty vandalism, though tbh those are historic rather than current problems at the school. There are no metal detectors and no general searches for weapons or drugs. It is certainly not a case of a police presence constantly visible in school.

Many secondary school have a dedicated police presence, and most have a named link officer. Isn't it one of Boris's pledges that every London school should have one?

Yes, it's a reflection of the times that a police presence is considered desirable in schools (also a reflection of the conduct difficulties in huge schools), but most of the time will be spent on crime prevention (with presence being a deterrent too). It's likely to look a heck of a lot more like building community relations than the need to be involved in incidents every week.

I'd not be worried, but would have a rosy, nostalgic chunter about what the world is coming too.

I worked at a secondary that had a policeman permenantly on site. It was excellent. He worked mainly as a youth leader/community officer. He took some of the most difficult kids on outings and got to know local families. He ran sports activities and was generally a great role model and community liason between troubled families and the police. There were no metal detectors or weapons in the school and he was a great asset to the school.

A good police officer on site is worth his weight in gold. I would worry more about the schools that pretend they don't ned a police presence

Hi all schools in London now have a named policed officer

Personally I feel a bit more assured
Things are delt very swiftly

My son has his wallet stolen by another student I very much doubut the parts would of too it so seriously if the school police guy had not got involved the wallet was returned with in 30 minutes the parents were called by him and they searched his room and brought it straight to the school

I don't think would of happend if the school had delt with it alone

We had a lovely police officer till the funding ran out, such a positive experience and also built up some good relationships.

Gave some of our more interesting characters a helping hand

I went to view a secondary school hat not only had a policeman but also a toilet attendant. The school said this was so pupils felt safe

That not hat, duh!

Mumzy - Did you feel safe? What happened in your toilets that there needed to be an attendant?