South Auckland students have an arresting time on the beat with police in a scheme designed to help them experience workplace learning, finds Rowena Orejana.
They see it on television. But they didn't think it actually would be this cool.
Riding with police on patrol are a dozen Year 13 students from Manurewa High School and De La Salle College.
They are seeing what it is like to be out on the beat, and they like what they see.
The group is taking part in Gateway, a government scheme that gives secondary school students the opportunity to experience workplace learning.
A year from now, these teenagers might be issuing you a speeding ticket, investigating a burglary at your house or chasing bad guys who are causing a nuisance on your street.
Gary Reid, Gateway coordinator at Manurewa High, says the programme would give the young people workplace qualifications that would be specific to the police.
"There's no guarantee they will get in, but the programme gives them a definite advantage compared to those who just walk off the streets and apply."
Counties Manukau is to be assigned 300 new police officers, from the $162.5 million police received in this year's budget.
As many as 51,511 offences were recorded in the Counties Manukau police district last year, with the level of violent offending increasing 5.1 per cent and drug and anti-social offending rising 7.3 per cent.
Avinash Kumar, 17, wants to follow in the footsteps of his parents. His father is a constable and his mother is a business services officer at Counties Manukau Police.
"I see them as the heroes nowadays. They just have a vest. There's life on one side and death on the other," he says.
Robert Taupau, another 17-year-old Manurewa student, witnessed an arrest.
"We arrested five people and I knew some of them," he says, adding that his experiences on the scheme so far have been "pretty awesome".
Mr Reid says no other schools in New Zealand are involved in this kind of scheme.
The students are put through the entire police entry test to ensure the law enforcement service is left with "the cream of the crop".
"This eliminates students who are not really serious with the programme. We have already cut down the number from 30 to 12."
The test results will also be used as entry requirements for the police camp, Te Ara Hou.
This will be held at the end of the year for students who meet the entry requirements for the police and who have the potential to be recruited into the New Zealand Police Force.
Constable Doug Eruera, the Cops in Schools coordinator for Manurewa High School, sees the enthusiasm in the students.
"There's potential in everyone."
It's a cop out!
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