Shop with a cop benefits children in need

Children in need are being specially cared for through the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) Shop With A Cop (SWAC) outreach initiative, says Custos of St Catherine, Honourable Icylin M Golding.

The Custos, who participated in the annual event recently, said the children should learn from the activity, and Justices of the Peace (JPs), including herself, should support it in whatever way they could.

The initiative focuses on children and families in challenging circumstances and children who are victims of crime in hotspot communities within the St Catherine South Division (Municipality of Portmore, and Old Harbour).

It involves police officers acting as chaperones and companions of the children throughout a day as they shop for items in local stores.

During the event, which was started in December 2022 by the Community Safety and Security Unit (CSSU), led by Territorial Officer for the St Catherine South division, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Paulett Baker, the children are given gift certificates or cash to purchase items of their choice, courtesy of the accompanying officers or through sponsorship from external stakeholders and individuals.

"It is such a good community effort, because of the joy you see in the faces of the children. I visited the police station and I saw them gathered with their parents. This adds to their confidence in the police and gives a different impression of what the police are doing. This is an awesome initiative. I am so proud of this initiative," the Custos said.

The SWAC came about as the CSSU team, in the effort to find innovative ways to engage its stakeholders, replicated the initiative from law-enforcement agencies overseas that used it as one of their policing methods to create sustainable and positive relationships and build citizens' trust and confidence in the police, especially the youth.

The programme began with children who were participants in the Youth with Behavioural Issues in Schools (YBIS) Programme, who were selected and taken shopping at the Maxie Department Store by a few members of the Divisional Management team and the CSSU staff. The remaining children were presented with gift packages, courtesy of the Manager of the store, who expressed a willingness to partner with the team.

"As we continue our journey of transformation and engagement, initiatives like these that St. Catherine South has embarked on, these are the types of initiatives that will bring us closer to our communities," said Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP), Karina Powell-Hood, at a recent ceremony for the programme, at the Greater Portmore Police Station in St. Catherine.

She said the children would long remember the series of positive interactions with the police.

"We are sure that in the future, these young persons will continue to support the police, and who knows, we may have some future police officers among the team. So, this initiative is far more than us just doing a job. This is really a passion project," DCP Powell-Hood said.

Commander of the Area Five Police Division, Acting Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Christopher Phillips, said he wants the initiative to be a mentorship programme, as it should not be a one day-event, "but a year-long mentorship programme that culminates in this event, because what we want is more police officers assisting in mentoring some of those children out there who are troubled children and to be there with them right throughout the year".

The Acting ACP added that the police should visit the children and inquire into what is happening to them.

"The police officers who take on these children must be there for them for the year. Continue shopping right throughout the year. Continue to shop for those values and attitudes that we want in our children or else we are going to lose them," ACP Phillips said.

According to conceptualiser of the initiative, DSP Baker, it not only allows officers to build trust, but it creates lasting memories and positive impact on local families.

"It also enables the engagement with children in a non-enforcement setting, and also helps to bridge the gap between the community and the police, promoting understanding, and reveal and strengthen the bond between community and the officers who serve and protect them," she said.

The programme has now been extended to the St Andrew North, Clarendon, and St Elizabeth Police Divisions.

It offers a unique opportunity to bring together law enforcement and community members to make a positive difference in the lives of children, by providing both practical support and a memorable experience, and assist in building lasting relationships and promote positive community outcomes.

-JIS

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