Rishi has praised the enthusiasm and commitment of nine young people who have volunteered to serve their community as police cadets.
The nine cadets were the stars of a passing out parade attended by Rishi and will now assist regular police officers with their duties in North Yorkshire.
At the event, held at Catterick Garrison, the cadets were presented to Rishi, Richmondshire Insp Mark Gee and the North Yorkshire force’s new assistant chief constable Elliot Foskett.
Friends and family watched proudly as the cadets – Francesca Buckley, Jack Carter, Carys Emptage (corr), Leah Holme, Edward Land, Ellie-Kaye Macarther, Charlotte Morris, Lewis Normanton and Thomas Walker – paraded, were inspected and took the Cadet Oath.
The passing out event followed a 12-week induction which involved a weekly two-hour session learning about policing duties and skills, some basic law and physical activities and drills.
Now the cadets will be able to volunteer at least three hours a month helping regular officers with a range of local policing duties, including attending community events such as fairs and carnivals, and taking part in crime prevention and community safety events.
They will also continue with their training nights, gaining greater experience of different departments with the force including crime scene investigation, roads policing and the dog section.
Rishi said: “It was inspirational to meet a group of enthusiastic and committed young people who have pledged to help keep their local community safe and to take the first steps on what may be a full-time career as a police officer.
“Their families were clearly so very proud of what these young people have achieved already – and justifiably so. They are a credit to their local communities.”
Insp Mark Gee also praised the cadets and the cadet staff – volunteers who are also serving special constables, police officers and PCSOs.
“The cadet unit run their teams in their own time, continually working hard to make the cadets the best they can be. We are grateful for their commitment.”
The Catterick Unit Leader, Sgt Nadine Slattery, said she was always impressed by the week-on-week dedication of the young cadets
She added: “I am proud of the achievements of the Catterick programme with former cadets now securing both police staff and officer career roles.”
