Police Support Volunteers and Chaplains Policy
1. Statement of Policy
The purpose of this policy is to ensure that Dyfed-Powys Police provides efficient and effective volunteer support that will add value, enhance the quality of our service to the public and enable the Force to achieve its mission and objectives.
The associated procedure documents for Police Support Volunteers, and the dedicated procedure document for Volunteer Chaplains provide a framework on how the force will operate in relation to their volunteer status and how volunteers should conduct themselves and their allocated duties.
Applies (but not limited) to: All categories of Dyfed-Powys Police officers and staff, whether full-time, part-time, permanent, fixed term, temporary (including agency staff, associates and contractors), seconded staff and volunteers. Police Officers, staff and volunteers accessing and using Force assets and property must have due regard to the contents of this policy.
2. Policy Scope
This policy and the associated procedures documents for Police Support Volunteers and for Volunteer Chaplains relate to all Dyfed-Powys Police officers, police staff and line managers who have volunteer support within their departments, and all Dyfed-Powys Police Support Volunteers and Volunteer Chaplains.
3. Powers and Policy/Legal Requirements
National PSV Framework
Dyfed-Powys Police – PSV Line Managers Guidance
Dyfed-Powys Police – Police Support Volunteers (PSV) Procedure
Dyfed-Powys Police – Volunteer Chaplaincy Procedure
Dyfed-Powys Police Employer Supported Policing Procedure
4. Options and Contingencies
The Superintendent and Chief Inspector with responsibility for the Central Prevention Hub, with the support of the Hub Inspector and Sergeant, will oversee the development of the Police Support Volunteer portfolio within Dyfed-Powys Police.
The Force Lead Chaplain will have overall responsibility for the Volunteer Chaplains, which includes day to day line management, training arrangements, allocation of duties and all administrative tasks.
The allocated departmental Line Manager will have day to day oversight of their police support volunteer’s (PSV) duties and will be responsible for ensuring that the volunteer is trained, supervised and capable of completing their allocated duties. The line manager will ensure that the volunteer has a workstation, the IT and any other equipment required to perform the role. Any training needs identified, will be dealt with, sourced and arranged by the PSV’s line manager. The line manager must ensure that the volunteer keeps a record of their hours worked and maintain regular contact with the volunteer.
Police Support Volunteers are expected to carry out their duties as described within their role profile and will not perform any duties that are not included within their agreed role profile. The volunteers will bring any identified issues to their line manager as soon as possible. The volunteer will maintain regular contact with their line manager and will advise the line manager if they are unable to attend.
Dyfed-Powys Police supports the Employer Supported Policing (ESP) programme and will provide police staff with a fixed amount of paid leave to perform their volunteer role. Details on the force ESP scheme can be found within the Dyfed-Powys Police Employer Supported Policing Procedure document.
5. Take action and review
This policy will be monitored to ensure that it remains relevant and effective, taking into account challenges to the policy and any changes to legislation and national guidance.
Any amendments to the policy and associated procedures documents will be implemented and overseen by the Citizens in Policing (CiP) Governance Group and the Operational Policing Board.
This policy will be reviewed by the nominated person within the Central Prevention Hub biennially. The policy owner may undertake a review sooner if for example there are major changes to legislation associated with the policy or major changes to force processes.
CODE OF ETHICS CERTIFICATE OF COMPLIANCE
This policy has been drafted in accordance with the Code of Ethics and has been reviewed on the basis of its content and the supporting evidence and it is deemed compliant with that Code and the principles underpinning it.
HUMAN RIGHTS ACT CERTIFICATE OF COMPLIANCE
This policy has been drafted in accordance with the Human Rights Act and has been reviewed on the basis of its content and the supporting evidence and it is deemed compliant with that Act and the principles underpinning it.
EQUALITY IMPACT ASSESSMENT
Section 4 of the Equality Act 2010 sets out the protected characteristics that qualify for protection under the Act as follows: Age; Disability; Gender Reassignment; Marriage and Civil Partnership; Pregnancy and Maternity; Race; Religion or Belief; Sex; Sexual Orientation.
The public sector equality duty places a proactive legal requirement on public bodies to have regard, in the exercise of their functions, to the need to:
- eliminate discrimination, harassment, victimisation, and any other conduct that is unlawful under the Act;
- advance equality of opportunity between persons who share a relevant protected characteristic and persons who do not share it;
- foster good relations between persons who share a relevant protected characteristic and persons who do not share it.
The equality duty applies to all protected characteristics with the exception of Marriage and Civil Partnership, to which only the duty to have regard to the need to eliminate discrimination applies.
Carrying out an equality impact assessment involves systematically assessing the likely or actual effects of policies on people in respect of all the protected characteristics set out above. An equality impact assessment should be carried out on any policy that is relevant to the public sector equality duty.
EQUALITY IMPACT ASSESSMENT COMPLETED: October 2024