Could you? Volunteering opportunities

There are many volunteer opportunities available with us, whether it’s serving your community as a Special Constable, providing crime prevention advice to your neighbours as an Active Citizen or supporting fellow young people as a Volunteer Police Cadet.

 

Specials

Essex Police has one of the largest Special Constabularies in the country, with 300 serving officers – many go on to become regular police officers.

Specials have the same powers as regular officers and dedicate at least 16 hours a month to policing, alongside their work and family commitments. Between 1 April 2022 and 31 March 2023, our Specials volunteered more than 119,000 hours of their spare time to protect and serve the county.

• What you do with your spare time can change lives, find out more on our Specials pages
  
  
• Follow our Specials on Twitter @EPSpecials

We hold special constable recruitment information evenings throughout the year, around the county and further afield, where you will have an opportunity to ask questions in person. You must register in advance.

Active Citizens and Police Support Volunteers

Active Citizens and Police Staff Volunteers work with our community policing teams to provide and raise crime prevention awareness and reduce the fear of crime, providing a vital link between us and our communities.

Active Citizens take part in a range of activities, including community days of action and knocking on doors in areas affected by crimes such as burglary, to inform residents what has happened and to answer questions or concerns.

There are also a wide range of roles available for our Police Support Volunteers, including some with specialist teams, such as fraud prevention, hate crime, cybercrime, digital forensics and the Management of Sexual Offenders and Violent Offenders (MOSOVO) team.

Police Support Volunteers may also join one of our many Essex Watch groups or support the Essex Police Museum at our HQ in Chelmsford.

• For more details or to enquire about our volunteering opportunities, visit our Volunteers pages
  
  
• Follow the Essex Police Museum on Facebook @EPMuseum
• Follow the Essex Police Museum on Twitter @epolicemuseum

Volunteer Police Cadets

Our Volunteer Police Cadets take part in a variety of different volunteer opportunities.

We have 13 cadet groups across Essex, made up of young people aged 13-18. From stewarding local events and helping with local community projects to assisting our crime prevention work, they provide us with a perspective on issues affecting young people in Essex.

• If you want to join the waiting list for one of our Volunteer Police Cadet Units, visit our Volunteer Police Cadets pages
  
  
• Follow our Cadets on Twitter @EPCadets