Basseterre, St. Kitts, November 11, 2015 (RSCNPF): The Royal St. Christopher and Nevis Police Force has started the process towards accreditation in accordance with international standards for Police Forces worldwide as outlined by the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc. (CALEA).
Regional Accreditation Coordinator, Mr. Bertie Hinds who also is the Deputy Executive Director of the Regional Security System based in Barbados, conducted a process familiarization workshop for the Royal St. Christopher and Nevis Police Force. During the training members of the RSCNPF accreditation team were briefed on the process.
The accreditation process he said, takes between 24 to 36 months, and is based on five steps; Enrollment, Self-Assessment, On-Site Assessment, Commission Review and Decision and then Maintaining Compliance and Re-accreditation.
According to the Head of the local accreditation team, Assistant Commissioner of Police, Vaughan Henderson, “one of the critical building blocks towards accreditation is a trained and capable Force. Building capacity will be a critical factor as we move forward towards accreditation, our ongoing training opportunities will dovetail well into the plan. It will benefit our officers in all departments, giving us the capacity we need. The presence of trainers from the Bramshill Police Advisors, the U. S. Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) and other Law Enforcement Training partners has been and will continue to be beneficial.”
The ACP added that he was encouraged by the announcement of having the continued presence of the Bramshill Police Advisors. “Having them involved for a longer period and with greater frequency on the ground, will help us as we continue to build the systems that are essential for modern day crime fighting.” He also noted, “the FBI presence also brought new techniques and opportunities for our officers to learn.”
Commissioner (Ag) Stafford Liburd said, “accreditation for the Royal St. Christopher and Nevis Police Force by (CALEA) brings the following benefits. An opportunity to voluntarily demonstrate that we meet an established set of international professional standards.” He added, “these standards are designed to increase our Public safety agency capabilities to maintain law and order, our effectiveness and efficiency in the delivery of public safety services, it encourages and enhances our cooperation and coordination with other public safety agencies, and with other agencies in the criminal justice system. It also builds capacity and confidence within the agency and the community,” he said.
The Commissioner further stated, he was excited to see the Force embrace this forward thinking initiative, and thanked the members of the local accreditation team for accepting to be a part of this challenging Force transforming exercise.
