POLICE are hoping to recruit officers from a range of backgrounds to be ‘more representative’ of the area.

Thames Valley Police started recruiting for 183 new frontline officers yesterday as part of the first wave in the government’s pledge to hire 20,000 across the UK.

Now the chief constable of the force, John Campbell, has said that diverse officers will help ‘effectiveness’ of policing in the area.

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He said: “The officer uplift offers a huge opportunity for Thames Valley Police to become more representative of the communities that we serve.

“A diverse workforce is an important part of the operational effectiveness for TVP and is essential in maintaining public trust with all of our communities.”

He said the force had already worked on getting more women into frontline roles, but now the team need to work on hiring people from ethnic minorities who might be faced with barriers when signing up.

PC Yasser Zubair said his family had reservations when he decided to become a police officer.

He said: “But an officer visited us at home to talk openly about it; they looked like me, spoke the same languages we spoke, knew our culture and they were able to reassure my family that I would fit in – that engagement allowed them to feel confident in my choice and I haven’t looked back since.”

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