The Lancashire Police Behind The Badge weekend was a huge success that invited the public to see a different side to the emergency services.
AdvertisementThe event saw a weekend packed full of activities including a kids road safety dodgems, face painting, fancy dress competitions and a military climbing wall. There was also the opportunity to meet the neighbourhood staff and police services from across Lancashire.
There were displays from various aspects of the police service including a mounted section, dog section and also a look at crime scenes. The event was funded by cash and assets seized from criminals.
Chief Inspector Gary Crowe was heavily involved in the open day and also looked after security and public safety at the event. He spoke very highly of the event and explains the idea behind Behind The Badge, “It s very much what it says.
“People associate a certain image with the police service as emergency responders so the idea is to show a little bit more behind who we are and what we are.”
The event drew in lots of attention on social media, with Mr Crowe recognising the importance of this new frontier of engagement, “We are a police service working with and for the public and social media is a great way of getting our services out there and also getting information back.”
Preston Police recently saw a lot of activity on their Facebook page after sharing an act of kindness when an officer donated an old games console to a vulnerable teenager.
Mr Crowe praised the event on the whole, “From my point of view it was fantastic. The weather was great which is always a good start. We welcomed around 20,000 members of the Lancashire public through the doors.
“It was really heartening to look around and show off what we can offer the community and to see the public outside of the usual policing environment.”
Future Behind The Badge events are expected, with meetings and discussions to begin soon.