North Yorkshire Police has highlighted the vital role and thousands of hours contributed by volunteers, including those in Scarborough, to help keep communities safe.
North Yorkshire Police is celebrating the remarkable dedication and positive impact of its volunteers, who have collectively contributed tens of thousands of hours to support the force and keep local communities safe.
The organisation relies heavily on civic-minded members of the public who generously give up their own time to carry out a diverse range of tasks for the police service. While these roles do not replace employed staff, the crucial work they do helps to free up valuable time for paid police officers and staff, allowing them to concentrate on frontline activities that only they can deliver.
Across the region, including in coastal towns such as Scarborough where Neighbourhood Support Volunteers work alongside partner agencies on crime prevention initiatives, the everyday impact of these unpaid roles is highly significant. These dedicated individuals are trained to spot vulnerable people who might be in need of advice or support, making a real difference on the streets.
Assistant Chief Constable Ben Moseley said:
"We have 178 police support volunteers, they contributed around seven and a half thousand hours in 2025 alone which is remarkable and that includes for example volunteer drivers, we have cybercrime ambassadors, we have rural watch patrols, we have community speed watch, front counter support volunteers, there's many voluntary roles and they play a huge part in North Yorkshire Police and keeping people safe and we have another 25 being onboarded at the moment for driver and neighbourhood support volunteer roles."
The voluntary positions within the force are incredibly varied and cater to a wide array of skills. They range from survey analysts who contact victims of crime to ensure the force is delivering an effective and efficient service, to drivers who assist transport services by moving vehicles and vital parts across the force area.
There are also unique opportunities for force control room call quality monitors, as well as role players who assist training services by taking part in a variety of scenarios, ranging from training new officers to participating in complex firearms exercises.
In addition to the extensive network of support volunteers, the force also benefits immensely from the bravery and dedication of its Special Constabulary, who dedicate substantial amounts of their free time to frontline policing.
Assistant Chief Constable Ben Moseley added:
"Our 64 special constables contributed around 24,000 hours in 2025 across a variety of roles in response teams, neighbourhoods, roads policing and other specialist areas and we've recently undertaken a recruitment campaign for special constables to start in September so again we're hopeful to increase that number further across the force.
I think having an organisation with volunteers brings so many skills and experience from other sectors and their own professional backgrounds and lives into policing it's really good for policing in terms of the skills that we can then provide, the problem solving that we can undertake and it's good for the soul of the organisation itself so I think that's a healthy position."
To become a police volunteer, applicants must be aged sixteen or over and undergo a comprehensive recruitment process. This includes completing an online application, a shortlisting phase to assess skills and motivation, a formal interview with a local volunteer manager, and pre-volunteer checks such as vetting and references.
Those interested in giving back to their community and checking the latest volunteering opportunities can search the North Yorkshire Police recruitment website, or sign up for alerts if suitable roles are not currently available.
There are more details at https://www.northyorkshire.police.uk/police-forces/north-yorkshire-police/areas/careers/jobs-volunteers/police-support-volunteers/police-support-volunteers/
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