A POLICE force is embracing David Cameron’s Big Society vision by enlisting unpaid volunteers into core policing roles.

People are being offered voluntary jobs in CID, event planning and Neighbourhood Watch after Darlington Police announced yesterday that they were launching a recruitment drive.

The force has invited people to sign up to a range of unpaid roles in an effort to boost its number of volunteers to 30.

With Durham and Darlington police facing budget cuts of £15m over two years, the plans are likely to be repeated across the region.

Inspector Mick Button, of Darlington Police, said the volunteers were not being recruited to take the place of staff who had been made redundant, but would be used to expand services and roles that had not previously existed.

“We have volunteers anyway, but we want to make a more concerted effort,” he said.

“We are going through the redundancy process as well and are trying to involve everyday members of the public to fill a part of what we do.

“We can’t have volunteers going out arresting people, but they can be working in the background. We want to tick our boxes, but theirs as well.”

But the plans have attracted some concern at a time when police officers and staff are losing jobs in the face of national public sector cuts.

Darlington’s Labour MP, Jenny Chapman, said: “Volunteering is an excellent resource within our society and the third sector in Darlington is invaluable to the town.

“Volunteers, however, are not a replacement for fullytrained experts.

“The coalition Government’s idea that volunteers, who are not professionally trained within the police service can compensate for the cuts they are making is frankly insulting to those being made redundant.

“I have spoken to Durham Police about this and have been given reassurance that any volunteer roles in Darlington must not in any way be seen as a replacement for paid staff.”

Successful applicants will not be paid for their work, butit is hoped that the promise of career development will lure talented individuals of all ages to carry out crucial roles.

The force is also understood to be planning a “street angels”

service, where volunteers are on hand to help police dealing with the problems associated with alcohol abuse in town centres.

Peter Thompson, chairman of Durham Police Authority, said he was fully behind the proposals and urged people to get involved, adding: “That support comes with the strong caveat that under no circumstances would the chief constable be putting anybody in positions previously held by part-time or full-time personnel.”

The scheme will be launched at Darlington police station on May 26. All applicants will be subjected to a rigorous vetting process and, if successful, will have to sign the Official Secrets Act.

For more details, call Insp Button on 01325-742194.