18 April 2019
Police numbers have been boosted with the graduation of 21 new constables from an innovative training scheme that allows
them to stay close to their families.
“The constables from recruit wing 323-5 are just the second cohort trained in Auckland as part of the Coalition
Government’s effort to strive for 1800 new officers,” says Police Minister Stuart Nash.
“They went through 19 weeks of intensive training at the Unitec Mt Albert campus and the North Shore Policing Centre, as
an alternative to the Royal New Zealand Police College near Porirua.
“The recruit wing is also a non-residential wing which allows them to go home to their families at the end of each day.
In contrast, the 16-week course at the College requires recruits to stay in residence.
“We listened to feedback from aspiring Police officers who say it’s hard on families to leave home for months,
especially if they have young children. We don’t want unnecessary barriers in the way of new recruits.
“We want our new Police recruits to be drawn from the communities they serve and to reflect our diverse populations.
More than a third of the new constables identify as Asian, 14 per cent are Pasifika, and 10 per cent are Maori.
“The youngest is 21 and the eldest is 42. One third are women. Between them they speak nine languages other than
English. Today’s graduation means 1212 new frontline officers have been deployed since the government took office.
“One of our top priorities is to improve the wellbeing of New Zealanders. There has been a significant drop in the
number of people who have been victims of crime in the past year. Crime prevention and community safety will be the
focus of these new officers,” says Mr Nash.
The Auckland-based constables will now be deployed to the wider Tamaki Makaurau area, across the three Policing
districts of Counties Manukau, Auckland City, and Waitemata.
ENDS