A group of teenagers have taken part in a programme to encourage young people from under-represented communities to consider careers in policing.

The 21 young people spent two weeks behind the scenes at the Met and at the North Kent Police Station in Northfleet as part of the ‘Elevated Aspirations’ programme, which has returned for its second year.

The students, who attend St Thomas The Apostle School and Sixth Form College in Nunhead, Southbank University Academy, and Haberdashers Aske Hatcham College in south London, had sessions with officers from homicide teams, firearms, forensics, the marine unit, the mounted branch, the Territorial Support Group and the 999 call control centre in Lambeth.

They were able to handle specialist equipment, try on kit, take part in role-plays on stop and search, shadow detectives on an investigation, and visit the courts at the Old Bailey.

A day’s visit to the North Kent Police Station in Northfleet allowed the children to watch public order training.

A special ‘graduation’ ceremony was held last Friday, July 21.

The project was started by long-serving Met PC Nsikan Etuk, and educational consultant Doreen Sinclair-McCollin, director of Elevated Minds which has been delivering teenage-led stop-and-search training sessions to new recruits since 2019.

Three young people from last year’s programme have continued on to find out about the route to their chosen specialism within the Met Police Service.

One will begin the Met’s apprenticeship route in 2024 while the other two have been involved with training new recruits.

PC Etuk, who has served in the Met for 20 years, said: “I wanted the youngsters to obtain a richer insight into the roles of the police through doing the programme, as well as to break down barriers and create more positive connections between officers and young people.

“The programme came about because we were working extensively with young people and when we went for a tour of Scotland Yard some of the young people said they really wanted to get experience, so it’s from the feedback of young people.

“A lot of people carry misconceptions of what it’s about and a lot of the youngsters are now talking about careers in policing.

“The name Elevated Aspirations is because we want to make a change in their minds and take them to another level.”

Doreen Sinclair-McCollin, director of Elevated Minds, said: "Elevated Aspirations aims to contribute to a culture change within the Met Police, build bridges and strengthen relationships between police and the young, under-represented community members taking part.

“We are delighted to be back for a second year running and hope this will act as a step toward helping the Met meeting its aspiration to increase the percentage of recruits from under-represented communities and to change 'generations of history' between police and black communities.”

North Kent’s Chief Superintendent Shaun White said: “The benefit of the programme is a disadvantaged community finding out what policing is all about.

“Kent Police is forward-thinking and we know trust and confidence in the police is low. Kent is changing, it’s a fantastic place to work, live and visit.

“Kent is a real trailblazer, we have a new Chief Constable who will not tolerate misogyny, racism, homophobia. We are a learning force and we will welcome anyone who wants to help keep our country safe.”

One student on the programme said: “It’s been a real eye-opener, although it’s not directly on my path it teaches me a lot of skills. It gives an insight into the positive side of policing.”

Another student, Allana, said: “It gives a really good insight into how police do things. We’re not educated on that in school, we have our own stereotypes of what police do and this gives me more interest in a career.”

Emmanuel said: “It’s been smooth, very succinct. They’ve ensured we’ve got a good idea of the breadth of the police. Learning about different jobs helps build character, and overcoming challenges, irrespective of what we want to do in the future. It expands our horizons.”

Jeremiah said: “Experiencing things as a young person is helpful. Some of us don’t know what we want to do yet so it’s nice to see there are so many different options.

“There’s possibly a future in policing for me, I don’t see myself on the frontline but policing is much more than that, I can see myself as staff.”

Awa Amon, who wants to be a detective and study criminology, said: “When you do this you get to see how they’re viewed from the outside isn’t how they are. Good police don’t get to shine, the bad cops get written about in the media so that’s what we all see. The reality isn’t how it’s portrayed.”

Andre Bonnick said: “I really liked it and I liked getting an insight into the police and the ins and outs. I specifically like forensics, because I like biology, or working with dogs.”

Niquel said: “I have considered policing but I haven’t decided on it yet. We were allowed to practice interviewing people and I liked it because they said my calmness worked well.

“Among your peers, you may have negative reactions if you decide to join the police but that makes you strong and they need more strong police officers.”