Call for radical overhaul of community policing

Garda sergeants and inspectors want a radical overhaul of the community policing structures within the force in the interests of breaking down the "anti-police ethos" in some sections of the community and improving relations with the public.

In a submission on the issue to the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, the AGSI has suggested community policing be put on a formal footing, with clear goals and parameters stated in a policy document.

The middle-ranking members also want to see the recruitment of full-time dedicated community gardaí.

They believe such officers could build invaluable relations with at-risk children by regularly visiting schools and that they could become actively involved in local sports groups, social clubs and all other community organisations. This would make the force more familiar and accessible to the public and the trust developed over time would greatly assist gardaí in preventing and investigating crime.

At present there is no formal policy on community policing within An Garda Síochána. While it is practised, it is organised on an ad hoc basis.

The AGSI claims the lack of any clear policy makes it "extremely difficult" to formulate local policies around general policing.

The association believes it also militates against its members becoming as involved as they would like in many community initiatives such as RAPID, which seeks to revitalise underprivileged areas through planning, investment and development, and Neighbourhood Watch.

It said some of these projects "disappeared into oblivion" over time and suggested a study should be carried out to find ways of periodically revitalising them. AGSI is anxious that, under community policing, gardaí resume the practice of visiting schools.

"In the past gardaí were designated schools attendance officers and in this role become aware of children who were 'mitching' and as such could be at risk," it notes in its submission to the Oireachtas committee.

It was vital for the wellbeing of children at risk, and also in the interests of familiarising children with gardaí, that visits to schools become a formalised part of community policing. The document was published at the conclusion yesterday of the AGSI's three-day annual conference in Kilkenny.

The AGSI also wants candidates for community policing to apply for such positions rather than be assigned to them.

It wants the community policing members to be allowed to do the job for a number of years in order to maximise their effectiveness. It also wants such officers to be given special training to enable them to reach out more to ethnic minorities.