Met-Track Participants Meet the Met's Finest

​Crystal Palace National Sports Centre played host to members of the Metropolitan Police Territorial Support Group on Tuesday (17th January), as they introduced local young people to the sharp end of policing London.
 
A squad of Met-Track hopefuls who train there under the tutelage of Scheme Director and coach John Powell, alongside his Trackspeed1-UK athletics squad, were treated to an up-close look at how London’s police deal with some of the most dangerous situations they can face.
 
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The session included chats on stop-search tactics, the kind of equipment used in various situations ranging from dealing with a violent suspect, to full blown disorder.  Then two scenarios were staged where the young people were able to dress in the Police equipment and deal with an officer posing as a violent man holding a knife.
 

“It was a really positive interaction between police and young Londoners whose eyes were clearly opened to the realities of police work and why officers do what they do and how they go about it,” said John Powell who oversaw the session.  “Breaking down barriers between police and young people like this carries so many longer term benefits,” he continued, “and it was obvious that several attitudes had changed by the end of the session.”
 
“We weren’t too sure of what to expect, this being the first of this type of session we have delivered,” commented PC Sam Grealy of the South London based TSG unit, “but it all seemed to be received very well, and we are now quite confident in moving forward and delivering similar sessions elsewhere.”