Gwent Special Constable (to start October 2023)

Gwent Police has an exciting and unique opportunity for members of our community to become Special Constables. Special Constables are volunteer Police Officers with full warranted police powers, uniform and equipment.

There is no such thing as a typical Special Constable. In Gwent we have Special Constables who come from a wide set of backgrounds and work in all sorts of careers. We have Specials who work in IT, food production, teaching, the airline industry, administration, hospitality, and the public sector. We welcome Specials who are full time carers, students, and those who are retired. We are a diverse team who recognise that one of our great strengths is that we all bring something unique to the team, and we all have something different to offer.

Volunteering as a Special Constable is a great way to give something back to your community, challenge yourself and develop new skills. Specials are a committed and valued team of skilled volunteer Constables, integrated into the force and to play a vital role in protecting and reassuring our communities.

As a Special Constable, you will be working alongside and supporting regular police officers operationally, through high visibility patrols, responding to reported incidents and assisting the public. You will play a crucial role contributing to the delivery of the policing priorities for Gwent. You will make new friends, see life from a new perspective and play a key role as leaders in our communities.

Volunteering hours are flexible and you can fit your volunteering around your personal commitments. All of our Special Constables have other commitments, full time jobs, families, studies, and many other responsibilities. We understand that and we work hard to make the Special Constabulary a flexible volunteering opportunity that fits around you. The initial training is the only part of the role that has set dates which are mandatory, after the initial training phase, it’s over to you to decide when you want to volunteer as police officers. All we ask is that you volunteer 16 hours per month as a minimum, so that you can keep your skills up to date.

You will be fully trained to undertake your volunteering role, with operational safety training, first aid, powers and legislation and much more. Your initial course will consist of one full week of training, followed with 12 weeks of one weekday evening and one weekend day (either Saturday or Sunday, or occasionally both). After this training you will be deployed as an operational officer, working from a station. You will return to the training environment for continuous learning throughout your journey as a Special Constable.

The Special Constabulary is a unique opportunity to be part of something bigger. If you join the police family as a volunteer Special Constable, you’ll gain skills and experiences to last a lifetime.

Application Process.

Following your application and the completion of the online tests, successful candidates will be invited to attend an interview.

If you are successful at interview stage you will have to attend the following assessments: fitness test; drugs and biometric tests; medical test (dates yet to be released).

The Competency and Values Framework is also available to download, this will give you an overview of the attributes and values that will be assessed at interview stage. Please note that there are several other sources of information on Policing, the Special Constabulary, and Gwent Police priorities, which are available online for further reading.

Any queries please e-mail centralrecruitment@gwent.police.uk