TE Kūiti police sergeant Craig Lindstrom is one of the local faces involved in a campaign to get more people into policing roles from Ōtorohanga and Te Kūiti. FILE PHOTO
POLICE are actively focusing on the recruitment of people who want to work in their home towns like Ōtorohanga and Te Kūiti. A campaign launched recently depicts local police figures in key places around the King Country in both photos and videos. Police told King Country News there was not an active shortage of staff in the King Country, with staff deployed to different locations based on need, and the recruitment campaign was a pre-emptive measure. Ōtorohanga and Te Kūiti are under-represented in statistics about where applicants are currently located or want to be based after they have graduated from the Royal New Zealand Police College, police said. Several key King Country police personalities feature in the campaign, including Te Kūiti sergeant Craig Lindstrom, youth aid officer Muffy Sheedy, rural support officer Collette Corley, school community officer Kat Payne, and constables Greer Ramsey and Nicolas Connolly. “We’ve got the advantage of being far enough away from the big centres without being truly isolated,” Craig said. “We can make a difference; we can assist people within the community and that’s what really drives us.” Muffy is shown in the video saying the little rewards she gets from her job are awesome. Collette is quoted saying she loves being part of helping her community. “I feel like I am making a difference. “You walk down the street, everybody knows you, you know everybody.” Knowing everybody was like having an extended family, Kat said. “I love it. I’ll be here as long as they’ll have me because I know that I’m making a difference.” Working at a local level meant seeing through resolutions, Greer said. “It’s not just put a band aid on it and leave. You can see what they need and how you can help them which is pretty cool. “You get to know a few of the locals and soon realise there are some really nice people in the town.” Information on applying to be part of police is available on the newcops.co.nz website. All successful applicants must undertake training at the police college in Porirua. Police say throughout each applicant’s recruitment journey they will be worked with to try and secure a post-graduate posting to a location of their choice.
