Information for parents and carers
The cadet programme is a national youth inclusion and engagement scheme designed to support the personal and social development of young people and provide opportunities for their engagement with Kent Police.
We aim to create a space where all young people, regardless of their background, can come together, learn news skills, make new friends and reach their full potential.
We work hard to ensure that we remain a trusted and respected youth organisation, and that our cadets, volunteers and staff are protected from all forms of harm or discrimination.
Activities
The cadets isn't just about marching around for drill, it offers lots of exciting opportunities and activities for young people, there really is something for everyone.
Cadet life is all about challenge, excitement and adventure. Cadets have many opportunities including UK camps, overseas trips and leadership courses. The focus is always on enjoying themselves while improving their skills.
All activities our cadets take part in are risk assessed. Whenever the cadets are out on activities within the community they are always under the supervision of cadet leaders.
The cadet programme has been successfully run for many years and has helped thousands of young people develop key life skills such as confidence, self discipline and resourcefulness.
Safeguarding
The safety and well-being of our cadets is our number one priority.
As part of our commitment to delivering the best possible experience to our cadets, we have a duty of care to safeguard and protect them, and we do all that we can to promote their health, safety and well-being.
Providing a safe and secure environment where young people can meet with others, learn about policing and policing issues, contribute to community initiatives and have fun is at the heart of the experience provided through the police cadets. The public expect and deserve to have trust and confidence in the police and this is even more so when this comes to protecting children and young people when participating in activities organised by Kent Police.
Kent Police manage their risk in relation to the safety of their cadets and leaders. The police officers, police staff and adult volunteers who support cadet units are expected, to uphold the highest standards in child safeguarding, protection and supervision. As part of this, all adult volunteers are checked and vetted before being able to participate and support cadet unit activities. Our cadet leaders are Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checked every three years.
In collaboration with police forces in England and Wales, and with the involvement of national youth groups like the Scouts and Girl Guides, we have created a national safeguarding framework that has been agreed by National Police Chiefs' Council and all Chief Constables have signed up to adopting. This offers a streamlined and consistent approach to the reporting and managing of safeguarding concerns, the recruitment of leaders, training, organising activities and beyond. This ensures that everyone involved in the police cadets knows what is expected of them at a local and national level and that confidential reporting and investigation is done in a consistent manner.
Vetting
All adults working with the cadets are thoroughly vetted. Our cadet leaders receive training on safeguarding and are provided with clear guidance on how to work with young people, as well as the standards expected from them as cadet leaders.
Our vetting guidance provides further details about the process.