BAME people in Barking and Dagenham are being urged to join the Met in a recruitment drive, as City Hall looks at diversifying the police force.
The latest government data shows only 15 per cent of Metropolitan Police officers identify as black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME), despite people from those backgrounds making up around 40pc of London’s population.
Black people make up just 3pc of the force but 13pc of the city’s population.
During Mayor’s Question Time on Thursday, Sadiq Khan acknowledged the Met must be more representative of the London’s diverse communities, and more BAME - particularly black - recruits were needed.
In response to questions from local London Assembly Member Unmesh Desai, Mr Khan said his new action plan for the Met would examine “how we deliver a more representative workforce with a proportionate representation of London’s black communities”.
He said there were already some positive indications with recent recruitment processes having “a high percentage of BAME officers coming through”, adding that retention and professional development of existing BAME officers is also a crucial focus.
Mr Desai said: “I am glad that the Mayor has reiterated his commitment to ensuring the Met is representative of the communities it serves.
“Increasing the number of BAME police officers in the Met’s ranks remains a key challenge, but it is a crucial facet in ensuring the Met can do its part to tackle the systemic and institutional racism that has blighted our society for far too long.
“I look forward to the Mayor setting out his full Action Plan for the Met in the coming weeks, so we can all see concrete proposals that I hope will improve the relationship between the Met and London’s BAME communities.”
The Met’s ongoing recruitment drive is aiming for 11,000 new officers by 2023.
The council’s job shops recently begun working with the Met Police outreach recruitment officer.
Cabinet member for employment, skills and aspiration, Councillor Sade Bright, is urging the people in the borough - especially those from underrepresented groups - to consider a career in the force and make a difference in their communities.
Cllr Bright said: “Now more than ever, it is extremely important that public services such as the police are truly reflective of the communities that they serve.
“In Barking and Dagenham, more than 50pc of our elected councillors are from BAME communities and so are 39pc of our staff.”
Visit www.lbbd.gov.uk/help-finding-work for more information about the roles available and how to apply.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here