Volunteers make unannounced visits to police custody suites

Volunteers make unannounced visits to police custody suites

Volunteers have made unannounced visits to police custody suites across the region this week.

Greater Manchester’s independent custody visitors carried out simultaneous checks on the welfare of people in custody.

The visit is part of National Volunteer’s Week, a national initiative to recognise and celebrate the valuable contribution volunteers make to all parts of our society.

The independent custody visiting (ICV) scheme ensures that custody facilities are closely monitored by people outside of the police force and is overseen in Greater Manchester by the police and crime commissioner’s office.

Wholly independent from the police, independent custody volunteers make random visits in pairs to police stations to check on the welfare of people who are in police custody. They look at a number of issues, from the treatment of detainees and behaviour of custody staff, to the effectiveness of custody processes.

Anita Ruddock has been an Independent Custody Visitor for more than two years. She said: "I began volunteering because I wanted to help others and make a difference. Being an ICV is interesting and rewarding - every visit is different - and I've met lots of people from different backgrounds and communities."

There are 30 ICVs in Greater Manchester, and every custody suite in the area is visited once a week. ICVs also inspect police custody at Manchester Airport once a month.