Police officers praise students as they graduate from MetGirlz programme

Breaking down the stereotypes – exciting initiative inspires females to consider a career in policing

A group of dedicated students from New City College have successfully graduated from the 10-week MetGirlz programme – receiving certificates and glowing tributes for their work at a presentation at New Scotland Yard.

The MetGirlz is an initiative run by the Metropolitan Police to empower young women and inspire them to consider a career in policing. It is also part of the Met’s action plan to combat Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG), build trust between the police and young females and promote safety in the community.

Throughout the course, which was run at NCC Havering Sixth Form, the group of 18 students studying a variety of courses, worked closely with Met officers, gaining valuable insights into law enforcement and learning about the various careers available to them within the police service.

There were visits by officers from different areas of the Met, such as TSG Special Forces, the Firearms Unit, the Dog Unit and Detective Inspectors. These officers explained their roles and ran sessions to highlight their work, giving the students some unique experiences, such as investigating a crime scene, firearm demonstrations, trying on riot gear, physical training, introducing them to the police dogs and puppies, and role-playing stop and search scenarios.

In small groups, the girls then had to come up with innovative solutions to combat violence against women and girls and make society a safer place. As part of their final challenge, they had to present these ‘Big Ideas’ to some of the Met’s senior leaders, including CI Mel Jenkins, CI Sharon Brind, PC Claire Argyle, PC Jo McCarthy, PS Lisa Ryan and Acting Inspector Jayshree Patel.

One ‘Big Idea’ was an app called SHOP (Safety, Help, Option and Protect), where vulnerable women could ask for help and talk to others in similar situations. A feature was an Emergency SOS, which would send a live location to family and trigger a loud alarm. There was a community chat section for anonymous discussions, monitored by the police, and a useful feature was being able to change the appearance of the app in settings to reduce the risk of it being found on a phone.

Other ‘Big Ideas’ included an outreach programme to schools to explain the work of the police and help regain teenagers’ trust; creating an interactive game called Blue Insight to educate youngsters on police searches and the dangers of getting involved in crime; and an idea of a Chai Chat space for young people to speak with officers in a relaxed and friendly setting.

The 10-week initiative culminated in the graduation at New Scotland Yard, where students spoke about their experience of the programme and received certificates of recognition.

Student Daisy Cunningham said: “Being involved with the MetGirlz programme has been an amazing opportunity. It has given me an insight into the different roles within the police and I now realise how much the police do to protect us. It was comforting to see how passionately officers care about trying to eliminate violence against women and how they are actively coming up with new ways to keep us safe. I am now certain that I want a future role as a police officer.”

PC Jo McCarthy, who led and delivered the programme at Havering Sixth Form, said: “I’ve been really impressed by the students and their commitment to the programme. Their ideas about building trust were excellent and I have seen them grow in confidence throughout the 10 weeks.”

NCC Senior Lead Pastoral Tutor Becky Konstandinou said: “What an unforgettable evening we had celebrating our MetGirlz at the graduation at New Scotland Yard. Over the past 10 weeks, these inspiring young women have shared powerful ideas and confidently presented their solutions to senior officers. Having family and friends join us to honour their achievements at the graduation made the night even more special. I am incredibly proud of them all!”

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