WHILE police officers are on the beat and catching cirminals, behind the scenes are volunteers who provide invaluable help to the force.

The 60 volunteer Thames Valley Police workers in West Oxfordshire and Cherwell donate a few hours a week to help with various projects.

They are given a wide range of jobs, from administration to informing the public how to report a crime.

Eynsham, Burford and Charlbury police stations’ front desks are all manned by volunteers.

Rosie White, volunteer coordinator for west Oxfordshire, said: “We take volunteers from the age of 16 and there is no upper age limit.

“Sometimes we get a 17-year-old who needs some experience or who wants to go on to become a police officer.

“Some people do it just because they have some spare time.

“We often have people who work full time and help us in the evenings or work weekends.”

The volunteer scheme, which is in its 12th year, has more than 100 different roles.

These include helping train police officers by taking part in role plays or undertaking studies.

Ms White added: “Members of staff come and see me and say: ‘Can we have a volunteer to help us do this?’ “They are nice to have, they don’t take people’s jobs, they are just an extra pair of hands to have in the office.”

There are a total of 500 volunteers across the whole of Thames Valley Police.

Richard Whatmore, 55, of Witney, has volunteered for the force for the past 18 months.

He said: “I retired last year from work so I thought I would keep myself occupied.

“I have been involved in operations and have helped to show people around.

“I do four days a week but you don’t have to do anything like that – it can be an hour or two hours a week.”

Ron Hollis, 72, of Eynsham, has helped out at the town’s police station for the past six years.

He said: “It helps Thames Valley Police to do a job that would take an officer off duty.

“I do a lot of administration, which does help and for somebody that has retired it gives them an extremely interesting job.

“It gives something back to the community.”

Inspector Mark Johns, neighbourhood policing inspector for Witney and Carterton, said: “The volunteers are a great asset to Thames Valley Police.

“If it wasn’t for the volunteers it would be difficult to do the work.”

For more information about volunteering with Thames Valley Police, visit the force thamesvalley.police.uk