Big day for detective training
Deputy
Commissioner (Management) Lee Ka-chiu with guests and other senior
officers at the Ground-breaking Ceremony of the Detective Training
Centre
Witnessing the important moment for the new centre were Director of Personnel and Training Ma Wai-luk, Acting Director of Crime and Security Lo Mung-hung and Chairperson of the Force Study Team on the Recruitment and Retention of Crime Officers at District Level (FST), Kowloon West Regional Commander Fan Sik-ming. Also present were representatives from New Territories South Region, Planning & Development, Architectural Services Department, members of the Detective Training Division (DTD) 2011-2012 Alumni Focus Group and Crime Managers Focus Group, as well as staff of Police College and DTD.
Back in April last year, the FST made 14 recommendations for improving the morale of crime officers, enhancing the attractiveness of crime investigations, and motivating officers to join the crime stream. One of the recommendations was to refurbish the LMSOB into a new Detective Training Centre to further improve the quality of criminal investigation training, and to boost crime officers' professional image, morale and sense of belonging with an independent training centre. This project also represents a strategic move to utilise the Force's accommodation to alleviate the pressure on the training facilities in Police College's Aberdeen Campus arising from an upsurge in recruitment.
Speaking at the ceremony, Mr Lee pointed out that since the 1960's, the Force had been providing criminal investigation training to officers, and improving training facilities and qualities to keep pace with the changing environment, in line with the Force's continuous improvement of service quality. The new Detective Training Centre will be equipped with enhanced training facilities such as audio-video recording system for every training suite and a newly developed interactive multi-media system for scenario-based exercises. In an effort to elevate the quality of detective training to meet crime officers' operational needs and to improve their capability of investigation, DTD had commenced a review of its training programmes. A new training module and curriculum would be rolled out in 2014 to coincide with opening of the Detective Training Centre, Mr Lee said.
Mr Lee went on to say that one of the Force's missions is to build a world-class detective training centre. Police units would commence researches to examine the feasibility. With the concerted efforts of all the parties concerned, this plan would materialise in the foreseeable future, he noted.