True to the Force´s values as a caring organisation, Personnel Wing strived to maintain a committed and motivated working force through welfare and support services as well as effective communication channels between Force Management and staff.
During the year, Training Wing consolidated existing resources and reorganised its command structure in preparation for the establishment of the Hong Kong Police College in January 2006. The new Police College aspires to become a centre of excellence in police training and development. At the same time, Training Wing continued to provide a range of training opportunities, both local and overseas, for Force members.
Human Resources
To bring in high quality members to the Force, Personnel Wing has adopted a proactive recruitment strategy and developed outreach programmes including the Police Mentorship Programme and Auxiliary Undergraduate Scheme. In 2005, a total of 100 undergraduates benefited from visits and experience sharing with their mentors while another 65 students were either serving or in training with the Auxiliary Police Force. Through these initiatives, the Force has established a very constructive partnership with local universities on employment-related matters.
The Training Exchange Programme with our counterparts in Guangzhou and Shanghai that began in 2004 has proven to be a great success in the management development of our serving officers. It has since been extended to other overseas law enforcement agencies including the Singapore Police Force and the Metropolitan Police Service of the UK. To further enhance this cross-boundary learning platform, new opportunities with other counterparts are being pursued.
During the year, Conditions of Service and Discipline Branch continued to monitor consultations between the Administration and staff on an improved pay adjustment mechanism, and to make preparations for a future grade structure review for the Force. The Branch also prepared Force Management submissions concerning the revised proposal in respect of civil service allowances and job-related allowances for the Disciplined Services.
Discipline Division moved forward on a proposal to expand the scope of the Minor Offences Report scheme, and conducted a Force-wide consultation on proposed changes to the scheme.
Welfare, Support and Staff Relations
During 2005, the Personnel Services and Staff Relations Branch helped cultivate the values of a caring workforce through pursuit of healthy lifestyle activities among Force members and their families, as well as providing services for families with special needs and fostering a spirit of social responsibility through community volunteer initiatives.
Force-wide activities such as a family carnival and a healthy lifestyle carnival were organised by the Welfare Services Group and Catering, Clubs and Sports Group respectively to promote family harmony and the physical well-being of members. The 31 sports clubs under the Sports Council and the 13 arts clubs under the Arts Council organised healthy lifestyle activities throughout the year. In addition, the Police Sports and Recreation Club and the Police Officers´ Club organised a variety of sports and cultural activities to foster a healthy lifestyle among Force members. A series of family life education programmes and thematic support groups to help officers and families with special needs such as bereavement, illness and disability were also organised.
The mental well-being of Force members was not neglected, with the Balances and Wisdom 2004-2007 promotion campaign launched by the Psychological Services Group continuing to receive wide acceptance. In addition, a Carelinks Cadre consisting of voluntary Force members was set up to enhance peer support and disseminate mental health messages.
During the year, a series of initiatives promoting the message of prudent financial management were introduced by the Staff Relations Groups to all Force members. The initiatives received a Merit Award (Internal Service – Team Award) in the Civil Service Outstanding Award Scheme.
A caring organisation cares for the community it serves as well as its own members. In 2005, Force members continued to participate in voluntary services in their private time. The Hong Kong Police Volunteer Services Corps volunteers and their family members participated in 82 volunteer activities with a total of 24 997 service hours. With the assistance of the Corps, the Keep-on Force Warm Clothing Collection Campaign 2005 collected a total of 31133 kilograms of clothing and material. The Corps also participated in the Law Enforcement Torch Run For Special Olympics and raised a total of $512,591 for the disabled.
Training Wing
During the year, the Force completed the review of its recruit Police Constable foundation training curriculum and signed a contract with the Open University of Hong Kong to incorporate Policing Psychology and Social Studies into its policing syllabus, an arrangement aimed at not only equipping trainees with the “know-how” to deal with police duties, but also enhancing their understanding of the “why” side of policing.
Through Training Wing, the Force also collaborated with universities to develop psychological competency training, the objective being to integrate professional psychological knowledge with practical policing experience, thereby providing officers with enhanced interpersonal skills in their daily operational duties and enabling them to manage the stress arising from police work.
Training Exchange
In March, in partnership with Interpol, the Force co-hosted the 15th Interpol Symposium for Heads of Police Training, the first time such an event was held outside Lyon, France. A total of 150 delegates from 47 countries attended. The Symposium´s aim was two-fold: exchanging the latest in training information, knowledge and technologies with police training leaders from around the world, and strengthening international training cooperation.
During the year, in order to enhance its collaboration with overseas and Mainland police training institutes, Training Wing signed a Memorandum of Agreement on “Faculty Exchange and Training Partnership” with the Australian Institute of Police Management and also launched a Mobile Training Scheme, an initiative where training staff work alongside various Mainland law enforcement agencies to organise firearms tactics training programmes for their officers. The Scheme has proven to be successful and will be further developed with a view to including other types of training.
Police Band
The Police Band, which comprises a Silver Band and a Pipe Band, continues to play an important role in public and community relations programmes. In June, the late Sir Shiu Kin Tang´s family presented the Band with a new silver mace, which will be used by the Silver Band.