Christina’s Day with Victoria Police
Latrobe Lifeskills recently participated in a pilot program, fittingly named ‘Latrobe Lifeskills & Whittlesea Police Academy,’ a program designed to break down barriers between police and people with a disability by giving Participants a behind-the-scenes look at the roles police play in the community through an immersive experience at various locations.
The program was initiated by Inspector Chris Allen, the Whittlesea Local Area Commander, who has been working to build stronger relationships between members of the Victoria Police and people with a disability.
Christina started her day at Mill Park Police Station, where she was Deputised for the day and issued a Victoria Police cap. The first stop for the day was Plenty Valley Shopping Centre, where Christina conducted a patrol of the shopping centre and joined the Coffee with a Cop session at Degani.
From there, Christina headed to the Greensborough Highway Patrol Unit, where she tried out the police sirens and license plate scanning technology and even did some mobile speed detection!
After lunch, Christina joined members of the Crime Scene Services, who helped Christina collect a fingerprint sample from a mock crime scene.
To finish the day, Christina met members of the Proactive Policing Unit and was given a show bag of goodies to take home before meeting the Chief of Detectives from the Whittlesea Criminal Investigation Unit.
Finally, Inspector Allen presented Christina with a framed Certificate of Commendation and a collation of photos from the day, generously prepared by the Crime Scene Services Unit.
Here’s what Christina wrote about her experience:
“Today I went to Mill Park police station. I was given a police hat, and I was made an honorary constable for the day by Inspector Chris Allen. We went on patrol to Plenty Valley Shopping centre. I had to look for suspicious activity, lucky there was none. I had a drink of water and chatted to cops during ‘Coffee with a cop’. Then I went to the Greensborough Highway Patrol Unit. They let me borrow a big yellow jacket, and then I went outside to see all the patrol cars. I got to scan a number plate and turn on the sirens. Then I got to use a radar speed gun, and all the cars slowed down! Then I learned how to do breath testing, and I did a breath test. The officers were really nice, I made them laugh with jokes, and they made me laugh too. We had lunch together back at Mill Park, and then I had a tour of the station. I saw lots of confidential things. I met the crime scene officers, they taught me about evidence and showed me how to take a fingerprint, this was my favourite part. I met community police, Sandra and Wendy, they gave me a show bag. I met some detectives, and they all looked very busy with paperwork. At the end I was given a certificate and a folder of photos of the day, I had the fingerprint I took in it. It was the best day, I made friends with all the police and learnt a lot of things.”
We would like to thank Inspector Allen for creating such a unique experience and to all of the members of Victoria Police who helped to make Christina’s day an unforgettable one.
