Diverse Communities IAG
We're looking for people from ethnic minorities to join our Diverse Communities Independent Group.
We want to hear from you if you are interested in sharing your views on policing and you live or work in the county.
You will have a keen interest in local policing and be willing to give feedback and insight around important topics.
This Group complements our geographically based Independent Advisory Groups which offer advice on a range of issues to our local Community Policing Teams, but are not representative of specific communities. It meets several times a year, online or face to face, supported by the Deputy Chief Constable and Deputy Police and Crime Commissioner.
Abdul Amin chairs the Diverse Communities IAG:
“Over the past year, we have been supporting Wiltshire Police to better understand the different needs of the various communities that make up our county. As members, we are very interested in the policing is done in our communities to tackle discriminatory crimes such as hate crime - especially crimes that are motivated by prejudice on the part of perpetrators against any particular race or religion. We also monitor how stop-and-search practices are carried out.
“We also help with the search for potential recruits. We especially encourage a broad range of people from all of our communities to join for the police force to become more diverse.
“I can confidently say that volunteering for the IAG is an incredibly rewarding experience anyone from any and all backgrounds should certainly have. We are particularly looking for members from Trowbridge, Westbury, Warminster Salisbury to join us.
“I would also love to see more representation within the IAG from the younger generations of the county from all backgrounds. I encourage young people to come forward and become ambassadors for their communities.”
Introducing the Chair and Deputy Chair
Chair Abdul Amin
As a member of the British Bangladeshi heritage, it gives me a great pleasure to be elected as the first Chair for the Diverse Communities IAG for Wiltshire Police. My passion has always been to help local communities of Swindon have their voices heard and make meaningful changes to make the neighbourhood safer and stronger. I have had the privilege of pursuing this passion through my role as a Swindon Borough Councillor for the past eight years.
The group is something unique that Wiltshire Police have formed. It is to better understand the needs of the diverse communities of Wiltshire. As a councillor working with a diverse range of communities, I appreciate there needs to be a mutual understanding between BME communities and the Police.
Deputy Chair Samuel Pearce-Kearney
I have been a Wiltshire resident for just over two years, after finishing a Politics, Philosophy and Economics degree. I currently live in Calne and I am a Town Councillor for my local area. I work as an auditor and merchandiser ensuring compliance for many high street brands.
I feel privileged to have been appointed Vice Chair of this IAG. It is great that Wiltshire Police has started the group and want to hear minority views. I believe listening matters and I am confident that I can ensure the views of the community are heard. I'm glad to have been part of this from the start. I am looking forward to helping the police to better understand the communities they serve and the issues that matter to them.
We need volunteers from ethnic minority communities to help us make sure we provide a quality service to the communities of Wiltshire and Swindon. Feedback and advice from people who are willing to help us understand the issues affecting these communities, while questioning and challenging current practices in a constructive way.
There are a number of ways our IAG members offer useful help and advice:
- How to recruit more people to work for the police from ethnic minority communities so that our service is more representative and reflects our diverse population
- Advice on retention and progression of officers and staff from ethnic minority background through the organisation
- Hate crime - what we do well, what we can do better, in particular how to get people to report hate incidents and hate crimes so that we can investigate properly
- Stop and search - we want to keep people safe, but make sure we stop people proportionately and fairly
If you identify yourself as Black, Asian or minority ethnic and have a keen interest in policing and its affect on your community, we want to hear from you.
We encourage you to share constructive criticism and offer suggestions about how we could do things better.
- To join the group, please click on the link to the application form below.
- If you are interested and have some questions before completing the form, please get in touch at [email protected]
Hear from some of our members
Minutes
Published minutes available to read and download below
Download our guide to Independent Advisory Groups